Operation Witch Killer
by SJSilver
Summary: As a rookie member of an elite PMC, Squall Leonhart is drawn into a conflict over the fate of the world. Together with other elite warriors, he must face down a threat beyond imagination, discover the secrets of his own mysterious visions, and let a dreamer save his soul. A novelization and reimagining of Final Fantasy VIII.
1. Dreams, Vanity and Steel

**Final Fantasy VIII**

**Operation Witch Killer**

**Dreams, Vanity and Steel**

_Where am I? Is this a dream?_

It's the sand beneath her feet that she notices first. She can feel the crunch of the granules and the heat of reflected sun light as she takes a few steps. But all of her senses are overwhelmed by the magnitude of information they receive. Her eyes are bombarded by the bright rays of the daylight. The sounds of the waves crashing against the beach engulf her ears, and she can smell the distinct scent of seawater. She also hears what she believes to be seagulls, although she sees no other living creatures. The young woman quickly makes her way down to the water where the sand is cooler; intent on providing relief for her sense of touch.

But as she makes contact with the water she's suddenly moving across the ocean at incredible speed. The young woman moves with such tremendous force that she only perceives the vastness of the ocean as she jets across it. Fear creeps into her mind as she realizes that her body seems to have simply vanished. A slight sensation of panic sets in because as she comes to the terrifying conclusion that she has no control over this supernatural out of body experience. How this is being done, and who or what is causing it she does not know. But she feels as if some divine force presses her on with inhuman power.

"I'll be here…"

A male voice, whispering into her ear, appears to originate out of thin air. The voice startles her. She sees no one and is certain no other human could be with her during this supernatural excursion.

"Why?" she inquires.

"I'll be 'waiting'…here…"

The ocean comes to an abrupt end and she now flies across a vast desert, the blue ocean water replaced with rust colored sand.

"For what!?" she demands. The cryptic messages from this invisible phantasm make no sense. She has no idea what the meaning of this ghostly monologue could be. The desert rapidly melts away into a field of long grass and flowers. The perfumes and scents from the vast amounts of plant life fill her nose and lungs. She still continues moving at god-like speed.

"I'll be waiting… for you…so…"

There is an erie pause as a moment of silence goes by before the phantom voice continues speaking.

"If you come here…you'll find me…"

Her movement comes to an abrupt stop in what seems to be the middle of this vast flower field. She looks down to see that she once again has physical form; a fact that she is grateful for.

_ My body is back but I don't know this place._

Looking around, she notices all the different hues of red, pink, yellow and orange the flowers have to offer. Suddenly the wind starts to pick up. It grabs billions of flower petals and tosses them around her, engulfing her in a spherical orb. She opens her hand as single petal lands and comes to rest in the middle of her palm. Closing her fingers around it, she is feels intense power that surges through her body and out through her hand, the heat of the energy taking her by surprise. The young woman opens her hand only to see a single ivory white feather float up into the air. It whirls around her, causing her body to spin in order to follow it's flight path. As the feather ascends up into the heavens, the sky darkens. She watches the feather go higher and higher until she can no longer see it. But then another object grabs her attention. A long, shiny object plummets from the sky and strikes the ground in front of her. Cautiously she walks to it, the object appearing to be a long, silver colored, sword-like weapon. As she reaches out to it a loud crack of thunder rings in her ears like some massive sonic boom, ripping her away from this world. As she is pulled from this dream, the phantom voice speaks one last time.

"I promise."

"Who are you!?" she shouts as her body jumps up from under the covers. A cold sweat covers her as she looks around the bedroom of her hotel suite at the Spring Crest Hotel in Balamb City, capital of the small island nation of Balamb.

"That same dream again...second time this week." she whispers to herself. She can still feel her heart racing from the mystical reverie.

A knock at the door to her room grabs her attention. The door opens slowly and a slightly overweight young man sticks his head in through the door.

"Hey...I heard you yell, are you OK Rin?"

"I'm fine Watts, thanks for checking." Watts hesitated a moment as if he wanted to say something more but nodded in silence then closed the door behind him. He'd been asleep on the couch when he'd heard the yell come from inside the room. He just hoped the stress she was under right now wasn't proving to be too much for her.

Rinoa glanced over at the nightstand and grabbed her watch. It showed the time as 6:07am followed by the date that read Tuesday, May 3rd 2217NE.

"Hyne, I need more rest." As she laid her head back down she briefly thought about the upcoming events. The next 48 hours were going to be busy, stressful and needed to be planned out carefully. She had to make sure the meeting with the Balamb Garden Headmaster would go down smoothly. The pressure was definitely on her. _He _had pulled some serious strings to arrange for her to meet the the Headmaster. So much was riding on SeeD's help and there was much more to be planned out.

_I owe him big time for this._

A dark stormy overcast of clouds lined the sky above the Gaulg Mountains of Balamb, though there didn't seem to be any rain, only strong winds with thunder. Two young men stood facing each other separated by approximately five yards of ground. One, a blond man with his hair cut short and slicked back, was the larger of the two, and stood idly by watching his opponent, an overconfident grin etched across the blond male's face. He wore a long white trench coat over a dark blue vest and black pants with black leather gloves on his hands. The other man, whom was smaller in stature but not by too much, had longer chestnut brown hair that was parted down the middle and hung to sides and back of his head. Aware of his opponent's egotistical grin, he simply ignored the show of vanity and continued to warm up by rotating his arms and stretching out his neck. He was clad in a pair of black BDU pants and a white muscle shirt topped off with a black, zip up, leather jacket that had a fur collar. He too, wore black leather gloves.

In front of the smaller man stood his weapon, an exotic-looking implement of destruction extending straight up from the earth it was jammed into. One half of this weapon looked like a revolver style pistol, complete with a frame, external hammer, trigger and trigger guard, and a traditional cylindrical magazine. But the grip of the firearm was extended for two hands. And where its barrel should have been there was a blade instead. A long saber-like blade that attached to its gun-like hilt. Drawing attention to the broad side of the blade portion, an artistic rendition of a winged lion was etched into the metal. As if to be a finishing touch in order to add to the deadly appearance of this killing tool, a silver lion head hung attached by chain to the bottom of the pistol grip.

It was a true marvel to gaze at. It was a weapon of legend.

The gunblade.

The blond-haired man carried a gunblade of his own. But it was a different model and had its own unique appearance. It featured a hilt portion that looked more like an automatic style pistol with a shorter grip for one-handed use. And the blade of this weapon was straighter, and closer in similarity to that of a rapier. The blade was also obsidian in color, and winged out at the bottom.

After another moment the man snickered loud enough for his opponent to hear. "Are you done playing with yourself Squall? I'm in kind of a hurry to kick your ass and get back to Garden."

"We're only training Seifer, just getting some practice in before the upcoming exam." Squall hissed back in retort.

Seifer always knew just how to push Squall's buttons. He was a master at instigating a challenge, competition or fight between the two. And he grinned as he made his next comment.

"Yea, I'd be afraid to fight me too."

That was the last straw. Without another word said Squall ripped his gunblade out of the ground and charged toward his opponent. He whirled the gunblade around the top of him with two hands to gain momentum then swung to his opponents left side. Seifer, momentarily stunned by his opponents charge, had only enough time to step back with his left leg and block the attack. Countering, he pushed his attacker away with his sword then thrust at him with his own gunblade. Seifer kept driving forward with thrusting attacks, one after the other. The browned haired man was driven back but blocked each lunge Seifer made, swinging his gunblade left to right. He circled left to get better positioning and Seifer followed suit but slowed down, putting more space between them. They circled each other, each looking for an opening of attack. All around them, cracks of thunder continued to fill the air.

"I didn't know you had the balls to charge." Seifer commented

"Stop checking my nuts out." Squall countered.

Seifer lunged at the Squall, spinning his body 360 degrees for a stronger blow. Seifer's blade whizzed through the air towards his opponent's right side. Squall quickly stepped back with his left leg and raised his left arm bringing the blade to rest just on the back of his right shoulder to block the attack. Both blades met, causing an explosion of sparks in all directions. Squall immediately counter-attacked, bringing his gunblade down in a straight slice over the top of his head. Seifer blocked the attack but couldn't manage to raise his weapon for a counter-attack. Squall kept slashing down at his head, alternating between center and right sided attacks. Seifer blocked blow after blow, holding the grip in one hand and the back end of the blade in the other. Seifer saw an opening and stepped to the left as his opponent came down with another blow that missed Seifer all together. The force of his strike almost caused Squall to lose his balance and he had to stumble to regain his footing. This gave Seifer all the time he needed. Squall swung his gunblade behind him with one hand and again charged at Seifer who stood there with one hand held out flat. Suddenly the oxygen in front of his hand compressed into a single point and burst into a flaming ball of fire Seifer shot off at his opponent.

_Cheating bastard!_

It was the last thought that rushed into Squall's mind before the projectile made contact.

He managed to get his weapon in between himself and the flaming projectile just in time. The fire ball slammed into Squall's gunblade and exploded, sending him flying to the ground. As Squall quickly tried to recover his stance, Seifer charged in and slashed down at Squall's face, the blade cutting into flesh with surgical precision. A horizontal line slashed into Squall's face began from the right side of his forehead above the eye brow and ran down across his nose to his left cheek. As blood splattered on the ground, Seifer stood back with a victorious smirk etched across his face. He was proud of his handy work and it only served to bolster his already inflated ego. Stunned for a second from the sting of the strike, Squall looked at the blood on the ground then screamed with rage, launching himself towards Seifer. With one hand he swung his weapon up towards the face of Seifer, sparks shooting off the ground as the blade dragged up off the rocky surface. Seifer had dropped his guard and wasn't quick enough to bring his gunblade up to block. Squall's blade caught Seifer in the face giving him a duplicate cut of his own, only this cut had its angle reversed. The force of the attack sent Seifer spinning to the ground, his gunblade flying out of his hands.

Squall stood for a moment trying to catch his breath when he suddenly started to become light headed. The world seemed to be spinning and getting darker. The last thing he remembered before hitting the ground unconscious was what he thought sounded like a young woman's voice yelling the question, "Who are you!?"

With blood dripping down his face, Seifer stumbled to his feet and walked over to his opponent. He gave him one look then sheathed his weapon before signaling over to the pair of onlookers that had watched this duel.

"Help me get this asshole up." he said with a chuckle. "We should get him back to Garden before he wakes up and decides he wants a rematch."

**NOTES**

Well thats the first chapter rewritten and completed. I hope you enjoyed it. I should mention upfront that I intend for this to be a reimagining of Final Fantasy 8 just as much as a novelization. Obviously there's aspects to the story as a video game that wouldn't make any logical sense when applied in a real world setting. But I honestly think that this is what makes the novelization of a final fantasy game so much fun and a challenge to write; because everyone is gonna have their own take on dialog, original scenes and the mechanics of how things like magic and junctioning work. I'll do my best to explain everything thoroughly but please, leave reviews asking questions and making statements.

Also, I will try to bang out chapters on a somewhat regular basis but I am also working on an actual original novel of my own making that I intend on trying to publish if I can get it done. And if its any good. And hopefully it makes me lots of money...some money...any money...ugh, I just want more money.


	2. Home Base

**Chapter 2**

**Home Base**

Tuesday, May 3rd, 2217NE

8:15am

The chirping of birds slowly broke through to his mind and dragged Squall back to consciousness. When Squall opened his eyes, he realized he was no longer at the Gaulg Mountains of Balamb. Slowly, he brought his hand up to his face. He felt bandages and gauze wrapped around his head. The bitter, sterile scent of alcohol and other disinfectants filled his nostrils.

Looking around, Squall began deducing his current location. He was lying on a bed in the middle of a small medical exam room. To his left was a drab green wall adorned with papers, charts and posters containing medical info and advice on topics like stress and alcohol abuse as well as several large diagrams of the human skeletal, muscular and nervous systems. Also positioned on that side was a small end table with a single bottle sitting on top of it. He guessed it was probably a pain killer. _Wouldn't mind some of that. _Still somewhat dizzy, he moved his head and looked behind him; an open window provided a light breeze. It caused the curtain to gently sway back and forth. Moving his attention to his right, he viewed a large observation window situated on the wall.

_I'm in the infirmary._

Also to his right was a stool with his black jacket, leather gloves and two jewelry pieces. The first was a small silver ring with the head of a lion engraved into it. The second was a larger silver chain with a medallion attached to it. The medallion was the shape of a lion with its mouth open, giving it the appearance of being mid roar. Below the lion head was a pointed cross below. The ring and the chain were sacred to him. He'd had them with him his whole life; as far back as he could remember. And although he couldn't remember whom had gifted him with the silver pieces, he felt that this person had been important to him. Along with his gunblade, the three items made up the trinity of his most prized possessions.

Bright sunlight flooded the room from the large sliding window that was open behind him. He could still hear the chirping of birds coming from outside. He tried to sit up too fast and caught himself getting light headed. Slowly he finished sitting up then began to assess his current condition._ Still dizzy from passing out. Hope its not a concussion._

The sound of the door opening caused him to look up. In walked a short middle aged woman with graying back hair tied back into a bun. She wore a white doctor's coat. He recognized her as a Seed Captain. Doctor Yuki Kadowaki, one of the top rated Medical SeeDs at Balamb Garden.

"Hurt again I see. When Dr. Kent told me it was you they dragged in here, I took your chart off of him and decided to come verbally abuse you myself."

Squall let out an audible groan as he buried his face into his hands.

Dr. Kadowaki chuckled slightly. "How are you feeling?"

"My head hurts." He began to rub his temples a bit but quickly realized the effort was futile because the bandages seemed to get in the way.

"No shit, ya don't say. Well that will happen when someone tries to cut your head in half," she shot back with a grin. Dr. Kadowaki reached for a small pen light in her upper right breast pocket. Clicking the light on, she checked Squall's eyes, flashing light into one pupil then the other. "Looks like your eyes are focusing; I think you'll be alright. Go ahead and say your full name for me."

"Squall Leonhart."

"And your payroll number?"

"Its 336153707."

"And what is today's date?"

"It's Tuesday, May 3rd, 2217," Squall replied groggily. He was getting a little tired of the questions.

"What planet are you on?"

Squall gave the doctor a look. "Terra, the same planet I was on yesterday doc."

Dr. Kadowaki ignored the sarcasm in his tone. She picked up the medical chart hanging off the front of Squall's bed and flipped the front paper over. "Squall Leonhart, seventeen years old, born 8/23/99, 5'10, 190 pounds, blue eyes, chestnut brown hair and very well built." Dr. Kadowaki looked down at Squall, who was only wearing his white t-shirt. It showed off his definition; he was lean and well built from lifting weights, running and several other various forms of intense physical training.

Squall's eyebrow shot up and he started to reach for his jacket. "Whatever," Squall grumbled. He was slightly annoyed by the doctor but really more mad at himself for letting Seifer land that attack. He could care less about the doctor's comments.

The doctor then looked over at his jewelry. "So I'm sensing a theme here with you and the lions. Is that like your animal spirit or something? Is that what you kids are into these days?"

Squall picked up on the sarcasm in her voice and shot her a death glare to convey that he wasn't amused.

The doctor silently chuckled for a second and waved the whole thing off to him. Then her face became serious again. "Look, I know you're a Special Forces cadet. You need to be more careful while training? Next time you might not be so lucky."

Squall put his head in his hand and shook it. "Tell that to Seifer."

Dr. Kadowaki sighed and put the chart down. "That damned Seifer…won't listen to anyone. He's always been a problem." She crossed her arms and sighed. "Why don't you just ignore him?"

"I can't just run away," Squall stated flatly. It was really a straight forward concept; if you ran from a bully, he'd never leave you alone.

Doctor Kadowaki threw her arms up in frustration. "You wanna be cool or a hero for standing up to a bully eh? Fine. I truly understand that. Hell, I even admire that about you. Just don't get hurt in the process." She skimmed through the medical chart a little more. "Let's see, it says here that your primary Instructor is Lt. Quistis Trepe. I'll call her now. Just wait here a moment."

Dr. Kadowaki walked out of the room leaving Squall to himself. He exhaled a long breath of air and laid his head back down on the bed. He heard the Doctor talking on the phone.

"Quistis, come get your student," There was a brief pause as the Doctor listened to what Quistis said. "Yes, yes it's Squall. If it's not him, then it's usually Seifer. Squall's injury isn't too serious. I'd say it was a deep abrasion or maybe even a borderline avulsion. I used a combination of a cure spell and several herbal healing potions to seal the wound up. It will probably leave a scar though. You can stop by now and get him."

Squall groaned and put his hand over his forehead. This was not what he needed right now when he was so close to graduation. He mentally began to prep his mind for the scolding he would get from his instructor. However, that task ended abruptly when he suddenly heard someone in the room speak to him in a quiet voice.

"Squall…so we meet again."

His attention was drawn to his right. On the other side of the observation window in the next room stood a figure of a woman with short, dark colored hair. She wore a long white skirt, a sleeveless light blue blouse and what appeared to be a light green scarf or shawl wrapped in between her arms. They're eyes met briefly and she leaned over and smiled for a moment. Then the mysterious woman simply turned around and walked out of the next room.

Squall was well aware that the observation windows were sound proof. He was also aware that she spoke in a voice barely louder than a whisper. A fact that made no sense to Squall.

_There is no way I could have heard her voice. Maybe I got hit harder than I thought._

Then he heard the electronic hiss of the double doors to the wing of the infirmary containing the exam rooms slide open. He knew it could only be one person.

* * *

Quistis Trepe walked into the exam wing with quite a bit of frustration running through her veins. She had been grading a stack of test papers on magic use when she had received the call from the doctor. Down the hall on the right by a nurse's station stood Yuki Kadowaki. She was currently signing a few papers. Quistis kept moving and when she got to Squall's exam room she took one look at him and rolled her eyes, scoffing in disgust.

_Idiots._

Squall took his hand off his head to look up at Instructor Quistis. She was decent sized in height; somewhere around 5'6 with a slim, toned build to her. Quistis had blue eyes and long blond hair that was wrapped up in a bun with several strands of hair left loose that fell to the sides of her head. She was wearing the standard issue SeeD office uniform. This was the uniform worn by SeeD personnel on a daily basis that held positions in the administrative offices or the classrooms as instructors. They would also be worn at business meetings, formal gatherings as well as any banquets. It consisted of a black dress jacket with decorative blue shoulders and a red tie with gold trim. On the left sleeve of the jacket of every SeeD were two patches. The first, positioned high up on the shoulder was a marking indicating that particular SeeD's rank. The second, positioned just below the ranking insignia, was a rectangular shaped patch of a single color. These colored patches were used to identify what MOS, or military occupation specialty, that SeeD belonged to. In Quistis' case, a solid black patch, several shades darker than her black jacket, sat below her solid gold lieutenant's bar. This indicated that her SeeD MOS was Special Forces, or SF for short. A longer black dress skirt for females made up the bottom portion of the SeeD uniform. Although the female SeeDs were also permitted to wear women's dress slacks as well if they so chose. They could also chose between high heels, knee high boots or formal shoes. Their male counterparts wore black pants with black boots or shoes.

"I knew it would be either you or Seifer!" she thundered.

Squall didn't reply. He simply sat up again and rolled his eyes.

"Come on, lets go," Quistis said. "What were you thinking? We both know that tomorrow is the field exam."

"I know about the exam." Squall got off the bed and collected his belongings then started to follow Quistis out when a thought, or more like a concern, registered in his brain.

"Where is my gunblade?"

Dr Kadowaki perked her head up. "I had one of the medics take it back to your dorm room," she replied.

Squall nodded and continued following Quistis out of the Infirmary. As he was about to walk out, he stopped and looked around for a moment, trying to find the girl with the short, dark brown hair that had spoken to him through the observation glass.

"What are you doing?" Quistis asked.

"Nothing." Squall replied, not wanting to make an issue of it.

As they exited the Garden Infirmary Quistis noticed a larger, dark haired SF SeeD who was a friend of hers, Lt. Nathan Cross. He was in casual clothing and they nodded to each other as they passed. Squall knew him only through reputation. He was an older veteran of field work and one of the more respected, and feared, SeeD warriors of Balamb Garden.

Continuing on, Squall and Quistis proceeded down the semi enclosed walkway path connecting the infirmary to the main hub in complete silence. Squall really had nothing to say to Quistis. But then again Squall never really had much he needed, or wanted, to say to anyone. However this particular bout of silence was a welcomed treat for Squall since he had reasonably assumed he'd still be getting chewed out by his instructor.

As Squall was just beginning to enjoy this lack of conversation Squall, he noticed a group of female cadets walk by and look up at him then whisper to each other and giggle. Squall shrugged it off. It was apparently rumored, that Seifer, Squall and a few other male cadets where ranked as some of the hottest guys of the senior cadet class. Not that Squall cared in the least. Attention was the last thing he wanted from anyone. He loved his solitude and didn't plan on giving it up for anything, particularly after he became a SeeD.

But Quistis had also noticed the two girls ogling Squall and wasn't about give up this opportunity to make Squall squirm. From her point of view it would be a fair consolation punishment in lieu of a scalding over his injury.

"I saw those two girls checking you out," Quistis proclaimed with a mischievous grin.

Squall, sensing the verbal ambush, picked up his pace with out responding. But Quistis wasn't letting it go that easily.

"They thought you were cute. You should have talked to them."

"..." Still nothing from Squall.

_And now for the finisher..._

"I know, you're just shy. I'll go get them myself and have them join the conversation. I'll tell them your wanna take them both out."

She stopped moving forward and turned around, audibly clicking her boots to get Squall attention. He slammed on his own brakes and swung around just in time to see Quistis wave and begin to yell back at them.

"Ok enough already. You made your point." He threw his arms outward to convey that he wasn't amused.

Quistis chuckled for a moment and thoroughly enjoyed watching Squall cringe. He was just too easy of a target to mess with. She waved it off as if to say she was done and they continued on with the silence setting back in. Noticing that he seemed a bit more moody than usual, Quistis thought it best to at least try to inquire into his thoughts.

"Is there something on your mind Squall? It seems like you're deep in thought."

Squall sped up his pace slightly to try to avoid the question but Quistis was right on his heels. Knowing he wasn't going to be left alone he answered. "Not really."

"Not really," Quistis said at the same time Squall answered, mocking him. She started chuckling again and her whole body shook. Squall turned around to face her.

"What's so funny?"

Quistis tried to stop laughing but needed another moment. Finally, she composed herself enough to answer. "Funny? No, no, it's not that! I'm just happy. I feel like I'm starting to understand my student a little, that's all."

"I'm more complex than you think." He felt like Quistis was always trying to analyze him in order to get him to open up. This was one thing Squall just did not do. He did not want any person to get too close. That sort of thing was too risky for him.

"Then tell me. Tell me more about yourself. Your likes and dislikes, favorite music, future goals; anything!" Quistis shot back with her arms spread out in anticipation. Squall didn't reply but only turned away from her and began walking again. Quistis kept up, waiting for some sort of response.

_Hyne, she never gives up._

Squall didn't want this dialog to go on anymore. "It's none of your-"

"Business!" Quistis finished with a shout. She heard Squall groan and again started to chuckle. "Come on Squall, we both have to get to class."

"I have to go back to my room and change into my cadet uniform," Squall stated.

Quistis shook her head and held her hand up as to pass on the offer. "Don't worry about your uniform today. I'll let it go. Just get to class so you're not late."

Squall nodded and the two kept on walking. As he did, Squall looked out to the right onto one of the open quad areas. Cadets and SeeDs alike moved about, relaxing and getting sun, eating a quick meal, conversing with friends or just relaxing in the shade of one of the trees to read or take a nap. Some wore their SeeD or Cadet uniforms while others wore casual clothing. The Garden Cadet uniform differed from the SeeD uniform. It consisted of a royal blue jacket with silver shoulders and trim over a white collared shirt. Royal blue trousers were issued to the males while short skirts were issued to the females. Female cadets also wore a yellow colored ribbon tied up in a decorative fashion around the necks of their shirts.

Squall watched the other inhabitants of Garden as he walked by; cadets and Seeds alike able to simply relax and enjoying each other's company. He sometimes wondered what it would be like to open up. To have real friends. To experience true relationships. But he was always quick to shut that type of thinking down as he believed it could only lead to disaster. Or more importantly, it would lead to heart ache and pain. Opening up had hurt him before and he wasn't about to have it happen again.

_I don't need anyone. I can take care of myself._

The two hit the end of the path and walked up the steps. This led to the Balamb Garden Main Hub as it came to be called. Garden was the term and name of this school; mercenary university and academy situated on the island country of Balamb.

Balamb Garden was a massive. It was a highly advanced technological achievement of ancient Centran architecture and achievement. It consisted of several large dome-shaped super structures situated and attached around a main colossal-sized configuration that had a pyramid-shaped, cone like design. Standing approximately 700 feet at the highest point of the central dome, Garden's grandest marvel was the golden circular crown-like object that levitated and rotated above the central dome. Through ancient anti-gravity technology developed by the Centrans, the ring was able to remain levitated. But how exactly the ring worked, as well as the the ring's true purpose, remained a mystery. All together the Garden easily covered enough space to be on par with a large university campus. While the true purpose of the Garden's creation was unknown, most scholars agree on a theory that the Centrans built it to serve as a fortress or outpost in foreign lands outside the borders of their own empire.

The academy had also added its own touches to Garden. The entire perimeter of Garden was enclosed by a ten foot high stone wall that completely surrounded it. Access to Garden had to be controlled and limited since it was considered a separate entity from the nation of Balamb. A single road led to the main entrance on the southern side and continued past it winding right to another entrance leading to several massive parking garages. Another separate road ran completely around the outside perimeter of the wall, giving a defined path for security patrols.

These patrols consisted of SeeD Military Police either mounted on chocobo or traveling in squads of four seated in Garden's CV42 "Gladiator" ACV or All-terrain Combat Vehicle. It was a decent sized four-door utility vehicle with a mounted fifty caliber machine gun turret on its roof. Garden had a decent sized fleet of the ACVs and used them primarily for the constant security patrols.

Quistis and Squall entered the Main Hub. The hub was the first floor of the central super structure. It consisted of a circular path that connected all the separate wings of Garden and centered around a grand tower that provided access to the upper floors through several elevators and three sets of stairs. The Centran engineering of the first floor was a marvel because the circular path sat propped up over a large interior moat that made up the real base of the first floor. It added a mystic, yet tranquil touch to the ambiance of the Main Hub.

Quistis and Squall walked over to the central tower and took one of the elevators to the 7th floor where his classroom was located. Squall slowly entered classroom 710 and saw Seifer sitting in the back row with a big, evil grin painted across his face. _Fucking prick._ Seifer was bigger and older then Squall. At eighteen years of age, Seifer stood 6'2 and was somewhere around 200 pounds of solid muscle. He was well built; lean and muscular, just like Squall. But Squall did take comfort in the identical slash mark across Seifer's face that ran between his cyan colored eyes. He allowed himself a small grin of his own.

Then Squall started walking back towards his seat with his head down. He was careful not to look up at anyone, especially not Seifer, who sat in the back row with him. No doubt news of his duel with Seifer had probably already spread all over campus. Because he and Seifer were the only gunblade users in Garden, everyone tended to watch them closely to see who the better fighter was. It didn't help that Seifer considered Squall his ultimate rival in life as well. He made it to his desk and sat down with his head slumped in his hands, looking down at the floor. Out of the corner of his eye he made out the image of several other cadets were looking over at him and whispering to each other. Squall let out a sigh of grief. The bandages he wore must have seemed like a bulls-eye to the other cadets and made it appear as though Squall had lost the duel. When in fact, Squall vividly remembered sending Seifer spinning to the ground with an identical slash to the face that he now sported a scar from.

A moment later Quistis entered the classroom and everyone except Squall and Seifer sat up at attention. "Good morning class, let's start with today's schedule. As you know…" Quistis trailed off when she saw Seifer. "Seifer, where is your cadet uniform? You are supposed to wear it to every class."

Seifer looked around the class for a moment then threw his hands up in the air with a confused look on his face. "We have uniforms!? I always thought that everyone just wore the same shit day after day." His comments were met with laughs from several others in the classroom.

Quistis put her hand up while shaking her head in disappointment. Everyone immediately went back to absolute silence.

"As I was saying, most of you are probably aware that tomorrow is the SeeD Field Exam for seniors testing for positions in SF, Engineer and Combat Medic. Just a reminder that SeeD MP candidates will have their exam later on this month on the 19th. All MP cadets are to report to Instructor Shen's classroom for PT after we are done here. Cadets who are participating in the exam tomorrow have free time until then. I advise all candidates to be in top condition and thoroughly prepare themselves. Those who are testing for Special Forces are to meet at the front entrance in the main hall at 0700 hours tomorrow morning. Cadets testing for Engineer and Combat Medic are to meet in the main hall at 0730 hours. Make sure you're wearing your cadet uniform. Are there any questions?"

When no one raised their hand Quistis began to stand up to dismiss class but stopped when another thought came to mind. "One more thing. Seifer, do not injury your training partners. We are all on the same side here remember? Be more careful from now on."

Seifer turned to his right and gave Squall a dirty look then smashed his fist down on his desk in response. Squall continued to look straight ahead. He didn't care in the least. He wasn't about to get into a fight this close to the SeeD exam.

Quistis ignored Seifer's response and continued. "Class is dismissed. Squall, I need to talk to you before you go."

Everyone got up and filed out except for Squall. He chose to remain seated at his desk. After most of the cadets left, including Seifer, he slowly got up and started towards the front of the classroom. Quistis was speaking to three other cadets so Squall waited off to the side. A minute later the cadets said goodbye and exited the classroom leaving Quistis and Squall as the room's sole occupants.

Quistis spoke first. "Squall, you haven't been to the fire cavern yet, have you? I know you didn't go last Thursday. You won't be able to participate in the Field Exam if you don't pass this prerequisite. It needs to get done now."

_I was going to go this morning but that whole thing with Seifer…_

"So do you have a good excuse for missing it?"

"Not really," Squall replied.

"Well then let's get it done now. Go to your dorm and get your gear. Meet me by the front gate in about thirty minutes." she said.

Squall nodded and Quistis walked out leaving Squall in the room by himself. He didn't want to admit it but she really was cutting him a break by letting him take the cavern exam at the last second like this.

_I better get going._

With out another moment of delay Squall hurried out of the classroom and down the hall to the elevators. As he turned the corner that lead to the elevators he got a glimpse of a small blue blur flying around the bend straight at him.

"I'm late, I'm late, I'm late," shouted the little blue blur. It crashed head on into Squall, causing him to take a step back and the blur to ricochet to the ground. Squall looked down and saw a slim, petite young girl with short brown hair curled out at the ends wearing a cadet uniform. She had spoken with a Trabian accent. Trabia was a country to the north east of Balamb and also located on the Tracian Continent, the same continent Balamb was a part of. She was still shaking her head to get rid of her dizziness from the landing.

Squall made no attempt to help her up but concluded that asking her if she was alright wouldn't break any of his personal laws. "Are you ok?"

She didn't answer and instead waited a second for him to help her up. After an awkward moment came and went she realized she wasn't going to receive any help from this guy. She got herself up on her feet then walked over to Squall. "There, I'm back on my feet and ready to go. Sorry about that, I was kinda in a hurry. Did you just come from Room 710? Instructor Quistis' class?"

"Yes I did but it's over now."

"Oh shoot! I missed another one of my classes. This place is so much bigger then my Garden. I just transferred here. Do you think you could give me a quick tour of this Garden?"

Squall had already decided that this girl was a bit annoying and he was tight on time right now. But he also remembered someone taking the time to show him around when he was new here. "Sure, but I have to make it quick ok? We'll take the elevator to the first floor lobby area of the Main Hub and I will show you the directory. That's the best I can do for you."

"Yes! Thank you so much! Whoo-hoo, lets go!"

Squall took the lead and the two of them walked off to the elevators. Squall hit the down button and one of the elevator doors immediately opened up. They both jumped inside. On their way down Squall questioned her about where she was from. He had made a guess from her accent but wanted to be sure.

"You're from Trabia right?"

"Yes, I transferred here from Trabia Garden."

"Then I can assume you're here for the SeeD SF exam correct? Trabia only sends its SF cadets here for our exams since they don't hold their own exam for that MOS."

"You are correct sir."

Squall gave a slight nod then switched back to silence. Down at the first floor they both exited the elevator and Squall pointed out the directory to the girl. She nodded and together they made their way down the steps to the directory which was placed in the middle of the front path of the main hall. This path led out to the front gate of Garden.

"Well this is it. Balamb Garden is pretty big so it can be difficult to find your way around at first. If you don't know where something is, just use this to find your way," Squall instructed.

"Question," she said.

"Ok, what is it?"

"Could you point out to me real quick what each one of the wings is for?"

"Ok. The Main Hub is the central super structure we are in right now. Its one big circle with paths leading to other wings. Starting out where we are now, which is the front gate."

Squall pointed to their location on the map. "The path we are on now leads back to the front gate of Balamb Garden. That's behind us. Directly north of us is the dormitory. It's huge and has fifteen floors. It's where just about all the students and many of the full-time SeeDs at Garden live since very few people commute. Balamb Garden only accepts citizens of Balamb, orphan children and transfer students like you. West of the dorms is the cafeteria. The food is decent and there is always a big rush for hot dogs. Directly east of the cafeteria is the garage. It houses all our vehicles, all guest vehicles, all repair equipment and there are even a few stables where we keep some chocobos. Its also pretty immense."

"I'm actually a pretty decent mechanic," the small girl chirped.

Squall nodded slightly before going on. "That's a good thing. South of the cafeteria is the quad. It's a recreation area that features an interior area with a big stage and a large exterior area where students can go to relax. I think there is supposed to be some big event coming up there. The hallway leading to the ballroom is also located there but they only open it for special occasions."

"Oh, I know what event it is. It's the Garden Festival; I'm planning to be on the committee. Do you want to help out too?"

Squall cocked up a single eyebrow. "Let's just continue, shall we? South of the quad is the infirmary. It's open twenty-four seven and you go there if you're sick or injured but many students also go there for advice about things. The infirmary also has several large classrooms and labs for the medical students and doctors. Back over to the other side. South of the garage is the training center. It's also open all the time and houses the gym, pool, indoor track, and classrooms where combat skills are taught. The armory and an indoor shooting range are there as well. There is also a live combat area that's fenced off because we've got captured monsters roaming around freely inside of it for us to fight. It's good practice and gets you ready for monsters you may face while on a mission somewhere. Most of the monsters kept there are very dangerous. Unfortunately there have been students seriously hurt and even killed there in the past so be careful when going inside to train."

The small girl cringed a little. "OK I'll definitely watch out."

"Last up is the library which is south of the training center. You can look up all kinds of information there and they have books on just about anything you can think of. It also has a computer lab there with internet access. That's about it for Garden's wings I think."

"One more thing, what about the Main Hub's floors?" she asked.

Squall nodded and realized he hadn't explained them at all. "The ceiling of first floor we're in now is a 100 feet high. The second floor starts above that."

The girl looked straight up, taking in the great height of the room she was in. "Wow, that is high up."

"Floors two through twelve are all classrooms. Floors thirteen and fourteen are are used by SeeD Military Police as their headquarters, locker rooms, investigation wing and the brig. They even have their own elevator on the far side thats just for them. Floors fifteen to twenty are luxury apartments given to higher ranking brass and top tier SeeDs. The next five floors are used for academic, military and financial administration as well as several offices for our legal team. There's apparently a large amount of space between floor twenty-five and the top two floors. Floor twenty-six is the command center as well as mission planning, briefing and debriefing. Floor twenty-seven is the Headmaster's office."

"What about the Garden Master's office? And who is the Headmaster?"

"The Headmaster's name is Cid Kreamer. I don't really know anything about the Garden Master. No one knows his name or has ever seen him. I don't even think he has an office here. But he has his own personnel called Faculty Assistants wondering around Garden that answer only to him. They are the guys in the red and white robes with the stupid hats that the SeeD MPs take orders from. Their only purpose seems to be enforcing the laws and rules of Garden. They're pretty strict."

With nothing more to say or add, Squall nodded to the girl and started to walk off towards the dorms.

"Wait a sec!" she yelled and caught up to Squall, getting around to the front of him. "Thanks for showing me around. Are you testing today for any SeeD position?"

"Special Forces," he answered.

"You too?! Thats great! I completed most of my training at Trabia Garden and only had to take a few classes here. Best of luck to both of us! Maybe I'll see you around. Take care." With that the small girl walked by Squall and headed off towards the library.

Squall checked his watch. Not wanting to waste anymore time, he turned and headed in the opposite direction towards the dorms. When he got to his room on the third floor he noticed that his roommate, Cole Hiseman, wasn't there. This didn't surprise him. Cole was an Engineering cadet looking to go into communications and wasn't around a whole lot. This was just fine with Squall; he and Cole never spoke much and Squall never tired of privacy and solitude. The dorm they shared, along with all the other dorms for cadets, were all designed the same way. The front entrance to the dorm room led into a common area. It had space for a couch and TV, a small kitchen area and the bathroom. In the back were two separate bedrooms, one for each Cadet. There were always two Cadets to a room. Squall was neat and organized, and it showed by the cleanliness of his room and even the common area itself. His roommate, however, was less than organized as his room was littered with books, magazines, dirty laundry and other nicknacks, all of which were flung about haphazardly.

Moving quickly, Squall went back into his bedroom to gather his gear for the fire cavern. His bedroom was quite spartan and plain. There was a bed in the far right corner with a single long shelf that was inset into the wall to the right of it. It had all his different school books and a few awards on it. To the left of his bed was a small end table with several drawers in it. To the left of that was a small desk and lamp combination with a single chair. Opposite of the desk and to the left of the door was the closet and next to that was a small cabinet he used to keep all his footwear. He had a pair of running sneakers, a nice pair of black leather boots he really liked that had a silver buckle across the front and another pair of black combat boots which he currently was wearing. A large case for holding his gunblade was perched up against the bed. A single decent size window stood directly above the bed and presently had its shade drawn completely down. Squall had his cadet uniform hanging from the top of the shade. It was spotless and pressed.

Lying in wait on the bed was his weapon, silver blade gleaming in the light. He shook his head in disapproval as he walked over the weapon. It wasn't supposed to be simply left out on his bed. It should have been placed back in its case and locked before placing the case in to the security stand located in his closet.

He looked over the weapon and performed a function check. He had given it the simple name of Revolver, based off of weapon being a revolver style of pistol. Squall liked to keep things simple, organized and plain. He wasn't one for flashy or exotic indulgences, including names for his weapons. He valued a utilitarian lifestyle. This was another big difference between him and Seifer. Seifer had named his blade Hyperion, after one of the most legendary warriors and knights of the old Centran civilization. But Squall saw no sense in adding flash to his possessions. It didn't make one a better warrior.

After completing a quick inspection, he placed it down on the bed and moved over to the closet with all his clothing. Squall's personal wardrobe consisted of his t-shirts, jeans, collared shirts, a few sweatshirts and a couple pairs of black BDU pants that he loved to wear. His closet also contained his field equipment, starting with the red colored duty belt he wore that was specially designed to hold all his gear. It was made up of a central duty belt that went through the loops of his pants with two other straps that went down and wrapped around his leg. This steadied the whole configuration. There were two more separate straps that crossed each other and attached to the duty belt while wrapping around his waist. They balanced out and steadied the gunblade he wore across his hip. With it on he could carry his sidearm, combat knife, flashlight, miniature med kit and the scabbard for his gunblade. It also held his extra ammunition for both his sidearm and his gunblade. Squall would have preferred to get his duty belt in plain black but this color had not been available when he'd gone to purchase it. He'd owned it for a while now and had come to like the color; he accepted it as a unique exception to his utilitarian philosophy.

He made a mental note to stop by the armory on the way to the front gate to get his sidearm. Only SeeDs were permitted to keep their firearms with them at all times. Cadets were normally not allowed to keep any type of weapon in their dorm room. The only exception were the cadets who were training to be Special Forces. They were permitted to keep their primary melee weapon with them so long as they kept it locked up and secure.

Squall quickly took off his normal leather belt and put on his red duty rig. That done he attached his gunblade scabbard and removed all the bandages from his head before tossing them in the trash can. Lastly, he walked over to the bed and holstered his gun blade. Squall turned and faced the mirror on the back of his door. Except for his sidearm and ammo he was fully equipped, wearing his black jacket, gloves, white t-shirt, BDU pants and his black combat boots. His wound had completely healed already, thanks to the advanced healing techniques Dr. Kadowaki had used. Only a dark colored scar remained that ran down his face in between his eyes. Squall wasn't happy about the scar and realized it would be an annoying reminder of Seifer's stupidity and recklessness. But it was only a scar and one of many he assumed he would collect over the course of his career.

Completely geared up, Squall felt ready for anything the fire cavern could throw at him. With out another second of hesitation he exited his dorm room and made his way toward the armory.

**NOTES**

I added more to Garden itself because it made it seem more life-like; everything you would think a mercenary school or academy for teenage students might have. It always seemed way to small and narrow to me in the game. I hope you liked the description of Squall's room. I decided to give him a room mate since there were two bedrooms in his room in the game. You may have noticed that I added different positions and jobs for SeeD instead of having everyone doing the same thing. I think it adds more diversity to Garden. All the different SeeD jobs will be explained later. Another thing is that I'm adding continents and naming them as well. Also adding other countries to make the planet (which I named Terra) seem bigger and more populated. Lastly, I made Squall taller and more muscular. Its more realistic and believable since he's been training for years. It always bothered me that they made him on the shorter side with a build I thought was a tad bit too thin. I'll probably be doing that with a few other characters.

Until next chapter...


	3. The Scenic Route

**Chapter 3**

**The Scenic Route**

Tuesday, May 3rd, 2217NE

11:15am

As Squall entered the main hall, he saw Seifer and his two friends, Raijin and Fujin, circling a shorter male cadet with blond hair and a tribal tattoo on his face. Fujin was a small silver-haired female with very light skin and an eye patch over right eye. She wore black leather pants and a royal blue coat buttoned all the way up.

Squall looked over at Seifer's other partner in crime, Raijin. He was a large dark-skinned male with short black hair wearing an open dark blue vest and baggy black trousers. They had been the two people watching Squall and Seifer fight earlier that morning. Together the three of them were part of the Disciplinary Committee, a group of cadets picked by the Faculty Assistants to help enforce some of the minor school policies. Squall never could figure out just what genius thought it be a good idea to make those three members.

Squall heard the last bit of the conversation between the four of them.

"…but I was only running to check if there were any hot dogs left in the cafeteria. Give me a break already!" proclaimed the blond haired student.

"Rules," Fujin deadpanned.

"You have to do what Seifer tells you. He's the man, ya know," Raijin said.

"That's right asshole. I am the man and there's no running allowed inside the cafeteria."

Seifer finished writing out the ticket and jammed it into the cadet's chest before flipping the ticket book closed and pocketing it. He looked up and saw Squall looking over at them. He started strutting towards Squall and snapped his fingers for Raijin and Fujin to follow, leaving the blond cadet behind with a pissed look on his face. Seifer stopped right in front of Squall with Raijin and Fujin at his sides. "So Squall, how's your face feeling?"

"About the same as yours I'd guess," Squall retorted.

"Seifer whipped your ass silly this morning, ya know," Raijin said.

"Lost," Fujin added.

"It was a draw Seifer and you know it!" Squall snapped.

"You passed out at the end Squall. Had it been for real, what do you think an enemy combatant would have done to you? You better drop the fair fight mentality before exam, otherwise you might get yourself or someone else killed." Seifer motioned to his comrades to follow. The three of them walked by Squall and headed off towards the dorms, laughing back at Squall as they did.

Squall knew Seifer had made a good point and was probably right about winning the match but didn't want to leave it at that. He turned back to face them as they left. "Seifer, some day you and I are going to have a serious disagreement."

Seifer stopped for a second then kept walking as he yelled his response back. "Well then, until that day."

Squall shook it off. Now was not the time to get into it with Seifer. He had a strong feeling that they would get plenty more chances to see who the better fighter was. Squall continued on his way to the armory.

Squall turned the corner and walked down the path leading to the training center. To his right was the gym and pool areas and on his left were the training rooms and shooting range. He passed by both; the armory was farther down on the left.

When he reached the got to the double doors leading to the armory and walked through; the only thing being farther down was the live combat area.

The armory was of basic design. Directly through the doors was an open area that led up to a long front counter that was sealed off by bullet-resistant glass and chain link fencing with only a single sealed door to admit personnel. The cache of weapons, munitions and explosives was kept in a sealed room behind the front counter.

Squall walked up to the service counter. Sitting there was Sgt. Adam Varno, a SeeD MP and head range instructor at Garden. Squall had never seen him in anything but SeeD uniforms. He always kept his blond hair high and tight and constantly spoke in a drill instructor's tone of voice. He eyed Squall for a moment before speaking.

"Cadet Leonhart, what brings you to the armory today?"

"I need my training sidearm. I have a prerequisite with Instructor Trepe to complete before my SeeD exam today."

"Waiting 'till the last moment son? Cadet, you are a fine shot but you need a little more discipline. Someone needs to light one serious fire in your ass." He got up from his chair with out saying another word and disappeared into the back. A minute later he reappeared holding a medium sized plastic black colored container. He placed the container down on the counter top in front of Squall then reached below the counter for the sign out sheet.

"Sign here."

Squall took the pen attached to the sign out chart and put his signature down on the paper. He opened the case and looked down at his issued sidearm, a Gen4 G34 pistol in 9mm. It was similar to the standard issued G17, the official sidearm of both Balamb Garden MPs and the Balamb military, but had a longer slide and barrel for increased accuracy. The slide had a piece of it on the top cut out to lighten its weight. Squall had also customized it a bit further by replacing the factory barrel with a fluted aftermarket one that was longer and threaded so that it could attach to a suppressor. He also swapped out the recoil spring for custom steel spring to absorb even more of the gun's kick. He did this because he kept the weapon loaded with the heavier 147 grain hollow point ammunition with an increased amount of gun powder called a _Plus P_ load. Lastly, the five ammo magazines he carried with it each had their base plates replaced with custom metal extensions so that each one carried twenty-two rounds instead of the default number of seventeen. These metal extensions additionally added weight to the bottom of the gun for increased balanced when firing. Squall liked the weapon; it was a reliable double action automatic pistol that was durable with a simplistic design meant for the wear and tear of field work. And as a SF SeeD or cadet, he was permitted to carry whatever weapons he saw fit as opposed to the other SeeD MOS groups. They had to carry the standard issued service weapons.

"Here are your magazines and ammo for your duty belt. You know the routine; load your weapon at the booths to your left."

"Yes sir," Squall replied. He took the case and walked over to one of the booths. After loading his up magazines he loaded his weapon with a full mag and pulled the slide back, charging the weapon. The slide flew forward and a crisp click sound reverberated through the room. He holstered the weapon and proceeded back out to the main hall. When he got there he made a left and started for the front gate.

Making his way around the hall, Squall again couldn't help but take note of how teeming with life Garden was at the moment. Around him hundreds of SeeDs and cadets moved about the main hall like ants in a colony, some traveling between classes, work assignments and lunch breaks. Several custodians were switching out light bulbs from a lamp post. Faculty Assistants moved around like hawks watching over the students like they were prey. With exception of late hours, the halls of Garden never seemed to slow down with the flow of people.

Being that he was completely geared up, Squall was a decently intimidating sight. He noticed as he walked that younger cadets gave him looks and whispered to each other while senior cadets kept their distance. Squall had a reputation of being cold, quiet and standoffish. He didn't have a single person in his life which he considered a close friend and he preferred to keep it that way because to Squall, no one was reliable enough to get close to. Most students respected his skills and dedication to becoming a SeeD but stayed away from him all the same. He was even well known to most of the Instructors and quite a number of SeeDs in the field as well. He ignored their gazes and kept moving.

When he made it out to the front gate Squall observed Quistis leaning against the hood of a sporty-looking red sedan parked up against the curb. She had changed out of her SeeD uniform and was now wearing a more casual outfit that included a longer peach colored skirt that went down just pass her knees, matching zip-up blouse with dark-colored sleeves that could be removed and black leather boots that went almost up to her knees. For armament, she carried a long chain link whip as her primary melee weapon, a combat knife and a stand issue G17. Quistis actually preferred the stand issue weapon over choosing some customized pistol. These weapons, along with spare mags, a small flashlight and miniature first aid kit, were all attached to the duty rig she wore around her waist.

Quistis noticed movement out of the corner of her eye and looked up."Are you squared away? It's a forty-five minute trip to the cave."

Squall cocked his head in confusion at the choice of apparel. "Yes. Are you wearing a skirt to a possible fire fight?"

"You don't think I can move or fight in this? Squall, never underestimate a woman in a dress or skirt and her ability to wreck shop."

Squall was surprised at her response but simply shrugged.

"Do you have your ID card with you? You will definitely need it to get into the Fire Cavern?"

Squall reached into his inside jacket pocket and pulled out his wallet before flipping it open. Inside was his ATM card, which drew credit from his Garden account, a few loose gil in the form of paper bills and his Garden ID card which had his name, ID number and picture on it.

"Got it," he replied.

"Ok then," Quistis said as she jumped into the driver's seat. "Hop in handsome."

Squall ignored the comment and got in with out saying a word. Quistis started up the engine and hit the accelerator. The car jumped and took off down the road.

Balamb Garden had one main road that led from its parking garage and outside lot to the Island Expressway. This was the main highway that ran from the west coast of Balamb, where its capital was located, to Balamb's east coast. The island had the Gaulg Mountains covering its northern coast. The southern coast was made up of mostly beach front called the Rinaul Coast. In between the two were the Alcaud Plains, which ran from the west coast, called the Raha Cape, all the way to the east coast. Garden was situated in the center of the island just south of the Gaulg Mountains. And just east of it was the Saltus Woods; a deep, thick forest that covered hundreds of the acres of eastern Balamb.

Most of the country's towns and cities, including the capital, were located along the southern portion of the island; up and down the Rinaul Coast. Being that Balamb was a smaller island nation with semi tropical weather, a large portion of its economy was made up of shore town tourism, boardwalks, beach resorts and fishing along with large ports for shipping. With the exception of Garden, Balamb's interior along the Alcaud Plains laid largely uninhabited by humans. The only other exceptions were four or five other towns and smaller cities that were situated at either the bottom of the Gaulg Mountains or out over the Alcaud Plains. Balamb also had several smaller islands that sat to the east and south of it called the Albatross Archipelago. The Balamb military had several bases along these islands in part, because the islands had large gold and silver deposits that were owned and mined by the government.

The car ride was utterly wordless as the two traveled east on the Island Expressway towards the Fire Cavern. Squall sat with his arms crossed looking out the window while Quistis tried to think of a way to break the awkward silence. Then an idea hit her.

"So how much do you know about Guardian Forces?"

"I don't feel like talking Instructor Trepe."

"Well I'm your teacher and a superior officer and I'm ordering you to."

"Fine."

"Excellent," Quistis stated. "Now tell me, what is a Guardian Force?"

Squall crossed his arms and stared blankly out the window. "Most scientific researchers say that they are simply monsters that have managed to survive for thousands of years, becoming incredibly powerful in the process and even learning to speak our language. Most of these researchers state that since they think GF's are just monsters, they have no real purpose."

"And how many Guardian Forces are known to exist?"

"We know of twenty potential GFs that meet the criteria for the title of Guardian Force but some are so rarely seen that their existence is still up for debate."

"What are their names?"

Squall let out a sigh and pushed some of his hair back behind his ears before continuing. "Quezacotl, Shiva, Ifrit, Siren, The Brothers, Carbuncle, Leviathan, Pandemona, Cerberus and Alexander all have confirmed sightings and have been studied to some degree. Doomtrain, Bahamut, Cactuar, Phoenix, Tonberry, Eden, Odin and Gilgamesh have only been spotted several times in the last 200 years. Griever and Diablo have never been seen or studied. Only mentioned in old Centran texts."

"Excellent, its good to know that you have some knowledge of material outside of combat." Quistis stated. "Here's our exit."

Quistis took the next exit off the highway and then drove towards the town of Bahn, a small town located in the Alcaud Plains just east of Garden. It was the only city within close proximity to Garden and sat nestled just west of the Saltus Woods. The forest was completely void of human settlement or housing and was home to a large quantity of wildlife and monster species. Quistis continued driving through the town, making her way towards the Saltus Woods.

"So what's the other theory behind the GFs?"

"Religious scholars say that the Guardian Forces are divine or spiritual beings created by Hyne to carry out his tasks as members of some sort of 'Angelic Counsel'. Others people who are religious say that they protect the inner workings of Terra; similar to mechanics. Each GF supposedly has a different aspect of existence to manage."

"Anything else?" Quistis queried. She made a right at the next intersection, turning onto a highway that led out of Bahn and into the forest. The highway was the only man-made thing in the woods; three lanes in each direction closed off on both sides by tall, reinforced steel and concrete walls meant to deny monsters access to vehicles and people. It led to the west coast and the Fire Cavern.

"Nope, we all done now?" Squall barked.

"Not yet. Now, what is the GF junction process and how does it work?"

"Most of the time GF's stay close to areas of the world that suit them best. They contaminate the rocks, soils and metals in these areas with a form of energy called ethereal radiation and this is how we manage to junction with them. They leave behind traces of this energy in the environment around them and we collect these materials then extract that radiation."

Quistis noticed Squall trail off with out answering the question completely. "Continue Squall, explain the extraction process."

Squall rolled his eyes and put his head in his right hand. Quistis never bothered him this much and he was starting to become fed up with it.

"It's extracted in a machine called the C.E.R.T reactor. Centrifuged Etherial Radiation Turbine. It uses a combination of electromagnetism, heat and pressure to separate the GF's energy from the physical matter. The end result is the magic enhancing isolated junctioning isotope. The M.E.I.J.I particle."

"Go on."

"The energy itself in it's purist form is incredibly toxic so if it isn't manufactured and administered with precision the results are deadly. SeeD SF cadets get two injections over the course their four high school years at Garden. The first after their junior year. It's main purpose is to prep the body for the second injection although some cadets claim they feel an increase in strength and speed after receiving it. But this claim is still being researched. The second shot is received after becoming a SeeD."

"What does the final injection do?"

"MEIJI strengthens that soldier's already existing magical abilities but also increases the users physical attributes. Strength, speed, stamina as well as injury resistance and recovery are all increased. It also sharpens all the senses. But the cost of running CERT is extraordinarily expensive and also a top secret classified technology known only to Balamb and Balamb Garden. It is a trade secret of Balamb and Balamb Garden reserved for SeeD Special Forces along with SF SeeD from Trabia Garden. It gives our smaller sized academy the financial and military edge it has because it creates super soldiers for lack of a better term. And it provides Balamb's military with SF operators since they have no programs of their own."

"Yet another text book answer Squall, I am impressed with your ability to memorize information like this," Quistis said.

"I'm not trying to impress anyone. I just want to get this over with and get back to Garden." Squall retorted.

Quistis scoffed in frustration. "I know your not trying to impress anyone. That isn't what this is about. But if someone gives you a compliment on your skills or knowledge, you may want to try just accepting it and thanking them. Not everyone is your enemy Squall."

"Well life sure as hell has a way of making it seem like that sometimes."

"Only because you perceive it that way." Quistis fired back.

Both sat in silence after that exchange of verbal artillery. Quistis was done trying with Squall for now and Squall had been done trying with everyone for most of his life.

As the car made its way out of the woods Quistis could see the Fire Cavern off in the distance. It was a single large mountain that was shaped similar to that of a quarter moon shape and backed up to the eastern coast of Balamb. Surrounding the cave was Fort Rakner, the largest military base in Balamb. It had a significant presence of all three of the country's military branches; its army, navy and air force.

The Fire Cavern was run jointly by both Balamb Garden and the Balamb military in an effort to safe guard its resources and use it as a training ground. Two rows of chain link fencing with barbed wire covered the entire perimeter of the base and several areas closer to the cave entrance had additional walls as well. Along with the fencing were guard towers stationed around the perimeter, each one equipped with bright spot lights and manned by rifleman or sharpshooters.

Quistis pulled up to the front gate and waited for the sentry to come out of the guard house that sat to the right of the gate. When he came up to the window both she and Squall flashed their Garden IDs to the guard who waved back to the guard house. Another moment later the gate slid off to the side and Quistis drove the car into a small parking lot area then shut the car off. They got out and stretched for a moment then started over towards the entrance.

"Squall, I have one last question for you," Quistis declared.

Squall stopped and turned to her, waiting to hear what it was. "Yes Lieutenant?"

"What is that over there?" She pointed to an opening that lead into the earth.

Squall looked over at what he obviously knew to be the entrance to the cave for a moment then looked back at Quistis with a raised eye brow. "Well it looks like a cave entrance to me Quistis."

"That's Ifrit's cave and you would do well to remember it. I've never heard of Ifrit killing any cadet before but he has dished out severe beatings in the past that ended the careers of three separate students in recent years. And he has killed intruders in that past."

"What's you point?"

"My point is this. We built this fort around that entrance to keep the public from wondering in and getting themselves killed. But this isn't our turf, it's Ifrit's. Ifrit allows us to be here and he allows us to monitor the cave just like he allows people to come down and challenge him. My theory is that Ifrit is way too smart and self-aware to be just some ancient monster that learned how to think. Instincts tell me they're divine so don't go in there with this lone wolf 'whatever' attitude."

Squall rolled his eyes. "You do know that most of the time Ifrit never shows up right? You just go through the cave and then make you're way back."

"They say he only shows up when he feels the presence of a true challenger. I guess we'll just see," she casually commented back.

"Whatever. Let's go," Squall replied.

The two of them continued walking over towards the entrance. A decent sized guard house attached to significant walling stood by the entrance to control access. Standing guard were several Balamb army MPs as well as two SeeD MPs and two Garden Faculty Assistants, donned in their usual red and white robes and large hats that covered their faces.

"State your business," the FA asked in a plain no-nonsense voice. They were always serious and stern; they never seemed to be helpful.

"I'm here for the Fire Cavern," Squall declared.

* * *

NOTES: I know, I massively changed what the junction system is and how it works. But I always thought that the way the system worked in the game created a major plot hole in the mechanics of the story. The game always made it seem like everyone had the ability to junction GFs to themselves to enable magic powers. And if so, why didn't you see everyone on the planet doing just that? All militaries, police departments and even criminals, all junctioned to GFs. It works in the game because its really just the method used to create RPG stats for the characters. In reality it would totally negate both the effectiveness as well as the need for Garden and SeeD.

I also think the method I'm using adds a bit more mystery to the GFs and opens up a lot more opportunities to use them as more significant characters later in the story. Plus I wanted the back drop of their world to be a state of Cold War, espionage and assassinations that was full of secret government programs. I wanted the idea of junctioning GFs to be this type of highly classified military ghost program that, while known to the world, is insanely expensive and unique only to the SeeDs and one of Garden's biggest secrets.


	4. Trial by Fire

**Chapter 4**

**Trial by Fire**

Tuesday, May 3rd, 2217NE

12:20pm

Squall stood idly by as the Faculty Assistant eyed him up. Something about them just didn't seem right to Squall. Because of the white hoods and huge hats they wore, you almost never saw their faces, which only made them seem shadier. It was like they looked at everyone as if they were pawns. Squall allowed himself to be eyed for another minute before crossing his arms and exhaling loud enough to be heard.

The FA's eyes sharpened on Squall. "I need your ID card and the DR89 form from Garden authorizing the test."

Squall reached into his coat pocket and produced the form of identification requested. The FA scanned it through the compact electronic reader and waited for confirmation to come back that Squall was eligible for this event. Quistis produced the DR89 form and handed over to the Faculty Assistant. He took the paperwork then did an about face and disappeared into the guard house. Squall took notice of the other FA. He didn't move or speak. Squall couldn't see his face but he had a feeling that he was also eying him up through his head dress and face garb.

The two SeeD MPs stood indolently off to the side and weren't paying too much attention to the events of the situation. They were donned in the issued SeeD field BDU. "SeeD MP" was printed across the their backs in bold white lettering and a silver badge was located on upper left hand corner outer vest carriers. Both had G17 pistols on their hips and the M4 carbine rifle slung across their chests. Loaded with thirty M855 5.56mm armor piercing rounds into a box magazine, the M4 was the standard issue rifle of both the Balamb military and Balamb Garden.

Another minute later the first FA returned from the guard house and handed Squall back his ID then continued on with his questioning. "Who will be the SeeD going in with you?"

Quistis stepped forward to answer. "I am Lt. Quistis Trepe, Instructor ID number 14C34. I will be escorting Squall into the cave as his support."

The FA member nodded slightly. "Very well then. This is a time based test. Your objective will be to get to the back of the cave to where the fire pit is located. There you will find a medallion with Balamb Garden's symbol on it. You are to take that medallion and bring it back here. You will have fifteen minutes to accomplish this task. Should you be attacked by Ifrit we will be able to detect it from here and will automatically pass you regardless of time so long as you win the fight. Should you choose to run from Ifrit, you will still have the fifteen minute time limit."

One of the SeeD MPs scoffed loudly. "Like hell that will happen. In the history of Balamb Garden, Ifrit has only appeared about ten times. Of which only one cadet has ever beaten Ifrit in a stand up fight and you don't look like anything special kid. Do yourself a favor and just run like hell if he shows up."

Squall looked over at the SeeD and grinned.

W_e'll just have to see won't we._

"Are you ready?" the FA asked.

"Yes."

"Then begin."

The FA's moved out of the way, leaving Squall with the ability to see into the cave entrance for the first time. It looked like nothing more than a black hole going into the ground. As he approached, Squall could already feel the intense heat from the depths of the cave spewing forth from its mouth and hitting him in the face.

"Let's go."

Quistis nodded and followed Squall as he took off into the cave at a fast pace. She knew that fifteen minutes wasn't a whole lot and she hoped they didn't run into Ifrit while they were down there. Quistis remembered running through this place when she was still a cadet and had lucked out on not facing the GF. She didn't care that Ifrit had only appeared a few times in the past, it was still creepy as hell to go down there with even a small possibility of having the GF show up.

Just inside the mouth of the cave was a pathway that led to a set of stone steps descending down even further. Squall hit the steps running. He wanted to get as far into the cave in the shortest amount of time possible. As they descended further down Squall began to see what he thought was light. When he hit the last step he stopped mid-stride. Before him was a great and vast underground chamber filled with what looked like pools and rivers of magma. The light generated from the liquid rock generated enough visibility so that they could see a little farther ahead of them. The heat hitting Squall was incredible and he was already sweating heavily. The place smelled heavily of sulfur. A single stone path sat high enough up out of the magma to provide a semi-safe path across the chamber and into the next room. Squall couldn't tell how big the room was or how long the path was. He turned back to Quistis.

"Let's keep moving, we don't have much time." Squall drew his gunblade from its scabbard and began moving at a quicker pace but not the running pace he was moving at before. Quistis followed suit, unlatching her whip and keeping up pace with Squall.

Squall moved on noticing the cavern's pathway would twist right or left then break into a straight away before meeting another bend.

_Thank Hyne there's only one path._

As they continued to move farther down the path Quistis began to think of Squall. He didn't seem to be distracted by her at all and seemed to only focus on his objective. "You know, a lot of male cadets snap under the pressure of coming down here with me. I guess they think they can't being alone with me during a dangerous exam. You know about the _Trepies_ right?

Squall stopped for a moment and shook his head. The Trepies were a group of cadets in Garden who were basically an extreme fan club which looked up to Quistis as a gorgeous and wise warrior idol figure. The males wanted her and the females wanted to be her and Squall thought it was absolutely pathetic.

"I'm not a member of the Trepies Instructor, so I'll be just fine. Now can we get back to the Fire Cavern issue?"

Quistis shrugged and threw her hands up in the air, gesturing that she was sorry to interrupt. As Squall was about to turn back around something caught his eye. Behind Quistis he could see movement in the air; something moving in the darkness. Something large, moving very fast towards Quistis's head.

"Down!" Squall yelled.

Quistis didn't have any time to respond and did as Squall ordered.

Squall rushed past her and leaped into the air, gunblade an attack position ready to slash. Out of the darkness came a large bat-like creature, only much larger then any normal bat species. Squall swung his weapon with great force and connected with the creatures wing, slicing it clean off. The creature yelped in pain and crashed into the path behind him. Quistis was back on her feet at this time and walked over to the dead creature lying before her. Squall walked up behind her another second later.

"Monster species, a red bat I believe," She said.

Red Bats were a species of monster that resembled the bats that naturally lived on Terra. However, these monster bats were easily the size of vultures and extremely violent and aggressive.

"We better get moving. Red bats always live and travel in packs."

Squall nodded in agreement and started to move again when the sound of yelping filled both of their ears. It was coming from all directions. They were surrounded. Quistis and Squall instinctively moved closer to each other, putting their backs together. With their weapons drawn, they waited for the impending onslaught.

"I don't think we are going anywhere yet," Squall commented.

"You're very observant," Quistis responded dryly.

Then another thought occurred to her. Quistis began to focus on her magic abilities, letting them charge for a moment. Then she casted a defensive spell called protect; one for her and one for Squall. Blue, circular, shield-like magical disks formed in front of them both then became translucent. Each one now had a single disk hovering a foot in front of their bodies that would follow their movement, staying in front of them. The spell would allow them to swing through it but would not allow any outside physical force to immediately breach it so long as the attack wasn't too powerful.

"Red bats are hemato-parasitic; they live off of fresh blood. The protect spells will give us some temporary cover."

Another second later the bats appeared out of the darkness, five or six on each side of them, barreling down towards their heads and necks. Quistis was the first to strike since she had the longer weapon. She lanced her whip out with great force, cracking it across the center mass of the bat. The strike cut it in two and both pieces fell into the magma pit, the carcasses bursting into flames on contact. She continued with this tactic and managed to cut three more down.

Behind her Squall waited patiently for each bat to come within range, holding the gunblade directly over his head. The first bat came within range; close enough for Squall could see the hunger in its eyes and saliva running off its teeth. He brought the blade down in a quick, powerful center strike that connected with the bats stout little head. Squall felt the crack as the blade went through its skull, causing the creature to crash. Squall then swung the sword to the right and connected with another bat, cutting its right wing off. The bat screamed and crashed landed into the path, bleeding out. Squall saw another come at him from the left but couldn't get his weapon up in time. The red bat came within a foot of him before suddenly slamming into the protect spell. A loud _PING_ sound rang through his ears as the bat slid down the protect spell and crumpled into a heap on the path. The other bats seemed to back off and now hovered above them just out of range of their weapons.

"What are they doing?" Squall asked.

"I don't know."

Their answer came a few second later when one of the bats produced a glowing orb in front of its body that exploded into a ball of fire. The other four bats did the same, launching fireballs at their two intended meals. Quistis and Squall rolled in different directions as the fire balls hit the ground they were just standing on and exploded. Quistis quickly drew her side arm and began firing into the cluster of bats. Squall recovered from the roll a moment later and took the same action. Both shooters took cover behind large stalagmites that jutted up from the path and continued their exchange with the bats, all of which were moving back and forth through the air while firing down at them. The battle had become a firefight.

Squall took notice of two bats that hovered close to each other. Carefully he steadied his aim and waited for the right moment. A second later one bat moved directly behind the other and Squall pulled the trigger. The round flew up into the air and cut straight through the first bat before nailing the one behind it center mass. Both dropped out of the air and burned up in the magma below. The remaining three yelped and took off into the cave, disappearing into the darkness a moment later.

Squall and Quistis came out from behind their cover and scanned the air a little longer before holstering their weapons.

"Time?" Squall inquired.

"You've got about eight minutes left."

With out another word, Squall took off running, Quistis running directly behind him. The straight away they were on took one last left turn before coming to the opening of another room. The path seemed to move past the wall of this chamber and ran into the next chamber. They hurried through opening and came upon a straight-away path that led up to a single circular shaped stone platform with huge stalagmites surrounding it and a small magma pool in its center.

Not bothering to slow down, Squall ran as fast as he could. When they hit the platform, Squall saw the medallion hanging from a rock in the back of the platform.

"You and Seifer really are something. You both possessed equal amounts of power and skill. My two best students."

Squall looked at her with a quizzical stare. He had never heard Quistis compare the two of them and it caught him slightly off guard.

"Seifer and I are nothing alike."

They began to move forward when suddenly the cave started to rumble. Quistis and Squall both looked at each other instantaneously.

"Cave-in," Squall suggested.

"No, I don't think so," Quistis answered grimly.

"That means…" Squall trailed off as the rumbling became greater.

Steam began to rise from the center followed by an explosion causing Squall and Quistis to jump back several feet. Rising out of the center pit was an eight-foot tall figure with the body of a human but the head of a wolf-like creature with large horns rising out of its forehead. It was the Guardian Force Ifrit. It crossed its arms and gazed down at them while hovering in the air then spoke in a deep, roar-like voice

"You have walked into my domain while I occupy it. I do not take kindly to strangers violating my privacy."

"We are here to collect the medallion behind you," Quistis said weakly.

"The medallion along with everything else in here belongs to me so leave or fight!"

"Then we fight you for the medallion," Squall yelled. he'd never seen any GF in person before and Ifrit was quite an intimidating site. But Squall wasn't going to back down for anything. Nothing would stop him from becoming a SeeD.

"Very well," the GF said with a slight grin forming across his face.

Ifrit let out a loud roar then jumped out of the air and landed in front of Squall and Quistis. Not hesitating another moment Squall charged the GF and launched himself into the air only to be smacked aside by Ifrit. He landed in a rolling heap off to Ifrit's right side. Quistis took this moment to concentrate for another spell. She held up her hand, palm pointed up, and a large boulder of ice formed above her. Concentrating more she launched the block of ice towards Ifrit. It flew across the platform and connected with its intended target, hitting Ifrit square in the face. He let out another roar and stumbled back, holding his face with both hands.

By this time Squall was back on his feet and saw Ifrit distracted by Quistis' attack. He charged at the GF again jumping into the air a second time. Squall's blade made contact with Ifrit's arms. As the blade cut through Ifrit's flesh, Squall pulled the trigger of his gunblade. The chambered round ignited, sending a bolt of explosive energy up the blade. The moment the energy made contact with Ifrit it blew open an even wider gash down his arm.

Squall landed on the ground and began hacking at Ifrit's leg, pulling the trigger each time he did so. The explosive cuts caused the GF to drop to one knee and Squall rolled to the back of Ifrit for one last attack. He had one round left in his six-shot gunblade and he waved his blade around his head to gain momentum before bringing it down across the GF's back, squeezing the trigger as he did. The explosive charge blew Ifrit's back open and sent him flying. He hit the ground face-down and went limp for a moment. Squall used this break to run back over to Quistis and reload his gunblade. He dropped to one knee and reached for a speed loader off his duty belt before reloading his weapon.

Both Squall and Quistis were sweating heavily and out of breath when they heard a low grumble. They watched as Ifrit rose to his feet, still covered with gashes from Squall's blade. He appeared to bleed a glowing orange substance.

"Squall," Quistis said, her voice laced with shock.

Squall looked over at Ifrit and watched as every single gash sealed up right before their very eyes. Ifrit rotated his head in a circle before fixing his gaze back down on them.

"Oh shit," Squall muttered.

Quistis looked at Squall who nodded back to her. At the same time they both reached for their side arms and mag dumped; emptying their sidearms in the GF's direction. The shots pelted Ifrit with round after round of hollow point ammo. But Ifrit simply advanced towards them, absorbing each round as they fired it. He was moving slowly but wasn't stopping and the gun fire only seemed to keep him from charging at them. Squall's weapon ran dry first followed immediately by Quistis'.

"Well that didn't work," Quistis yelled.

Squall got an idea then turned to Quistis. "We're just fighting for the medallion. He's not using magic and if he did, we'd be toast for sure. Remember what you said before? He's testing us. You keep hitting him with spells; I'll charge him physically and keep him back."

Quistis nodded and began to concentrate on more ice spells. Casting spells was like running a marathon for the human body and any normal person could only cast so many spells before they became exhausted or completely passed out altogether. Quistis was a certified SeeD and as such had received all her MEIJI shots, allowing her to cast more powerful spells and a higher number of them.

Squall turned from Quistis and faced the GF who was still moving towards them, now no more then fifteen feet from them. Squall gave Quistis one last glance then charged forward to the beast that towered over him. Waving the gunblade around his head, he brought the blade down on Ifrit's chest. The GF raised his left arm to block the weapons cut, the limb absorbing the attack. Squall planted his left foot and raised his weapon again, bringing it down as hard as he could. But the GF simply raised the other arm and blocked it with out much effort then threw a straight jab directly to Squall's stomach, followed by a slash from his claw. The attacks caused Squall to stumbled back and collapse to a knee. He brought his hand up to his chest to check the wound. It wasn't extremely deep but it was bleeding heavily and had slashed the front of shirt he was wearing.

Behind him Quistis focused as hard as she could to form another ice spell but between the heat of the chamber and the exhaustion she felt she couldn't get one to form. She'd hit her limit even as a SeeD.

Out of magic for the moment, she grabbed her whip and ran towards the GF. As she got just within his reach she hit the ground and rolled behind him before filling back up onto her feet. Before Ifrit had time to turn around Quistis gave him three powerful lashes across his back, causing the GF to yelp in pain. But the lashes did not slow him down. He turned and backhanded her with great force. Quistis flew back until connecting with a stalagmite. The force of the hit caused her to bounce off the rock and hit the ground with a plop.

Ifrit turned around just in time to see Squall now standing in front of him. Almost on reflex the GF swung his left arm, his claws set on Leonhart's face but only sliced air as Squall ducked under the swing and thrust the sword forward. The blade penetrated Ifrit's upper chest. Squall screamed out a mighty war cry as he ran the beast through. Ifrit's knee's buckled and he dropped to one knee, finally defeated.

Seeing this, Squall began to relax as Ifrit's head dropped forward and went limp. Slowly, Squall started to pull the blade out of the beast's body. Just as the tip of the blade exited Ifrit, he snapped back to life and smacked Revolver clear out of Squall grip then wrapped his hand around Squall's throat. By this time Quistis had managed to get back on her feet but was too woozy from the hit to take any action. She only prayed that Squall was right about Ifrit's intentions.

Ifrit lifted Squall up by the neck and dangled him out in front of him like bait. Squall tried in vain to shake loose or pry himself free of Ifrit's grasp. The beast reeked from scent of fire and sulfur. But he looked the beast in the eye with out fear.

The instant Ifrit saw that look in his eyes he grinned and nodded. He lowered Squall back to the ground gently and released his grasp on Squall's neck then took a few steps back. Quistis hurried to his side and they both gazed up at the GF, hoping the fight was over.

"You assumed correctly. My objective was not to kill you but to challenge you. You defeated me in combat but I needed to see for myself how you would face defeat. You looked death in the face with courage. You will face challenges and trials, all of which you must overcome. I was ordered to test your will power and strength. You have a great fire within you Squall Leonhart but you are missing a single component to unleash your full potential. I will say no more."

Ifrit raised his hand and made a slight flick of his wrist. The medallion flew across the platform to Squall's hand. Then, without another word or gesture, Ifrit simply faded into nothing and vanished. The Fire Cavern itself suddenly became calm and dormant, as if it had gone into hibernation.

"Time," he asked Quistis.

Quistis turned to him with a perplexed look across her face. "Squall, we just faced down Ifrit and lived. I don't think it matters what's on the clock although I'm certain we are out of time."

"Good point," Squall replied, it finally sinking in what had just transpired.

Squall then proceeded to exam his chest wound. He holstered his weapon and pulled his medic kit out. Quistis did the same and together they quickly cleaned and dressed their wounds then each one casted a cure spell on the other.

As they exited the Fire Cavern, both the MPs and the FA's just stood in awe. The moment that Ifrit appeared they were able to detect it and had been absolutely certain the two of them would have come out running and screaming for their lives. But instead the two of them emerged victorious with the pendant. Granted, they both looked battered, dirty and beat up. But victorious all the same.

"How did you manage to beat him?" questioned the FA angrily.

"I didn't really, I only showed him I wasn't afraid to fight him," Squall replied.

"The rules state that if you fight Ifrit and still emerge with the pendant that it counts as a pass." Quistis added. "However, this cadet not only fought Ifrit, he defeated the GF in battle. And I'm sure you could also monitor that from here as well."

"I don't believe it," stated the MP who had made the comments about Ifrit to Squall before.

While Squall definitely wasn't one for gloating normally, this situation seemed to justify an exception. Squall tossed the medallion to the MP as he marched past him like a boss in a dismissive manner.

"Hold that jawn for me and make it two losses for Ifrit."

Quistis was walking behind Squall and could not contain the sarcastic smile plastered across her face as she walked by. And by the look on their faces, she didn't have to say anything at all. She was proud of her student and that was enough.

Squall walked a few more steps before he stopped and turned back to the four of them. "Who was the other?"

The one MP didn't hear him, still mesmerized at the medallion in his hand and what it meant. The other MP had heard it and looked up. "The other who?"

"Who was the other cadet to fight Ifrit and come out with the medallion?"

"It was General Crace," the MP replied.

General Crace was the highest ranking SeeD officer of the SeeD Special Forces and answered only to Headmaster Kramer.

Squall nodded silently; he didn't want to show it but he realized just how big of a deal that was and what it would mean. Quistis must have understood as well because she and Squall exchanged glances at the same time. Word of his accomplishment would spread quickly, and that was something Squall did not look forward to; the attention it would bring.

* * *

The car ride home was pretty quiet and it was starting to get to Quistis. She knew that Squall was a man of few words but after what Ifrit had said to him, she would have thought he'd have something to say. She turned to look at him but he didn't notice. Squall blankly stared out the window and seemed to be looking up towards the mountains. Not being able to take it anymore, she took some initiative.

"So, what do you think Ifrit meant by what he said? I mean GF's don't really make too many appearances much less have a conversation with you."

Quistis' comment was met with nothing but silence from Squall and she started to think that he'd just ignore her. Quistis turned her attention back to the road and was about to drop the subject when Squall spoke.

"I don't know what he meant. What I do know is that right now I have to focus on my next task which is passing the SeeD exam. I'll worry about my fate or whatever later on."

She understood his answer. Squall had to focus on the exam and nothing else.

_ Cross one bridge at a time._

Quistis decided not to try to force anymore conversation for the rest of the trip home. Squall had a lot on his plate right now and just needed to think to himself.

It was about 1:45pm when Quistis' sedan pulled up to the front gate of Balamb Garden. Quistis put the car into park and Squall began to get out when Quistis spoke up.

"Get some rest. And get that wound looked at before tomorrow."

"Okay. Thank you for letting me take the Fire Cavern test late, I appreciate it."

Squall's face was completely emotionless but Quistis knew he meant it and was grateful. A sly grin ran across her face.

"Sure thing handsome," she replied.

Quistis watched Squall walk through the gates and then disappear into the crowd of cadets and SeeDs. As she put the car back into drive and took off towards the parking garage, her mind raced. She didn't want to be worried but she couldn't help it. A Guardian Force wouldn't say something to a mere human with out serious purpose and Quistis wondered what trials and challenges awaited Squall.

After returning his pistol to the armory Squall double timed it back to the dorms. He wanted to avoid any people or crowds on the off chance that the news about the Fire Cavern victory had made it back to Garden. When he entered his dorm room Squall found Cole sitting on the couch watching TV. He looked up at Squall and took a double-take.

"Dude, what the hell happened to you? It looks like someone beat the piss out of ya."

Squall couldn't argue with that statement. And the fact that Cole didn't already know about Squall's fight with Ifrit was a relief.

"Someone beat the piss out of me."

He continued past Cole and entered his room. There he collapsed down onto his bed, closing his eyes and trying to rest for a few minutes. While he was both thrilled and honored that he'd entered a club only General Crace belonged to, he was worried about what Ifrit had said to him. He told Squall those things as if he had some great destiny planned out for him.

_What could he possibly have meant?_

Squall was fully aware that the life a of SeeD SF would be full of danger and perils and that his life could end at any moment. But he had this sinking feeling that the 'trials and challenges" Ifrit spoke of did not apply to the normal occupational hazards of his future career. And why did he make it sound like Squall would be a vital part of some momentous event that had not yet unfolded? In the grand scheme of things Squall was a simply foot soldier. True, he'd be a SeeD SF and have the MEIJI particle but still, he'd just be one lone soldier. Nothing more.

And what was he missing? That's what bothered him most of all. Ifrit had stated that Squall was still missing something. Squall wanted to believe that the GF simply meant the second MEIJI injection but instinct told him that was incorrect and way off base. With no other ideas as to what the hell the Gf could possibly have meant, Squall simply dismissed the comments. He was convinced that he wasn't missing anything. He was certain of it. Squall had the drive and will to become a great SeeD and the years of hard work and training to make that happen. Thats all he needed. Thats all he'd ever need. Anything else was useless. Was weakness. Was a distraction.

Not wanting to think about it any more, he rolled off his bed and reached for his towel. What he needed right now was a hot shower to work out all his muscles. He stripped down completely then wrapped the towel around his waist. Before he headed off to the shower he reached into his desk and pulled out a single-dose potion drink. The effects of the potion would start to work almost immediately and every bruise and minor cut on his body would rapidly begin to heal over the next few hours. He also would follow his instructor's advice and get seen at the infirmary then grab something to eat before calling it a night. He needed to be healed; he didn't want any wound from today to interfere in the exam tomorrow.

Squall exited his bedroom and made his way to the shower. Once inside he turned the shower to a decent temperature but cranked the water pressure up all the way. He got in and his body instantly began to relax. Squall rolled his head in little circles around his shoulders while hot water ran from his head down to his toes. Squall then emptied his mind, allowing only a single, focused goal to remain.

_I will be a SeeD. I will not fail._

* * *

NOTES: Just a quick mention of the Ifrit fight. I wanted to make it a grander and bolder event that almost always plays out one way for most cadets but of course plays out differently for Squall. Who General Crace is will be explained in more detail in later chapters. I also thought it was appropriate to place a military installation around the Fire Cavern seeing as how it would definitely be a priceless resource for Balamb in a world that again, is in a state of Cold War. Oh, and all the weapons mentioned in this story really exist and you can look them up if you wanna see what the look like. I actually own the exact Glock 34 that Squall carries. I customized it myself.


	5. Proving Grounds

**Chapter 5**

**Proving Grounds**

Wednesday, May 4th, 2217NE

6:45am

Squall had awoke that morning on his own ten minutes before his alarm clock even went off. He quickly had jumped into the shower, more than anything to simply rinse off and wake up, before getting dressed. The shower had done its job; Squall was wide awake and currently stood fully dressed in his cadet uniform and geared up with his weapon belts. It was at this point that he noticed that his roommate Cole had also already left for the day. Then again, Squall had gone to sleep earlier last night and didn't know if Cole had actually come home at all.

_Might have stay with other engineering cadets._

Cole was also in his senior year at Garden and would be taking part in the same exam today as Squall with an engineering mission. Squall didn't have any problem with Cole. He'd certainly taken notice of Cole's dedication over the years. Cole had worked just as hard in his MOS as Squall had to pass all the required engineering and communications testing. He genuinely hoped that Cole passed today and became a SeeD as well.

After getting dressed Squall had wolfed down a few breakfast bars he had in his room. He hadn't really been hungry at the time but decided it would be best to try to eat a small amount. He didn't want to risk eating anything heavy and settled for the bars and a bottle of water_. _

_ I'll definitely need the carbs later on._

Squall stood in front of the mirror in his room, double checking the appearance of his uniform and gear. Actually, at that point Squall could have made the argument that he was triple checking, or even quadruple checking, everything to make sure he was prepared for the exam today.

_You are ready for this._

When Squall finally convinced himself that he could do no more to prepare, he took one final look in the mirror and let out a deep breathe then nodded to himself. He then turned and exited the dorm, marching down the hall towards the elevator.

After taking the elevator to the lobby of the dorms, Squall caught himself walking quicker than usual and realized he was a little nervous. Squall didn't want to admit to himself that he was nervous but he couldn't deny the truth of the matter. His whole life so far, at least as far back as he could remember clearly, had been dedicated to becoming SeeD Special Forces. He'd grown up at Garden and considered it his home. He had trained and studied for years in order to get ready for today's events.

As Squall rounded the circular hallway and came around to the entrance he saw a large group of cadets already beginning to assemble. Most of his class was there along with the two other senior SF cadet classes that would be testing with him. Squall also took a moment to notice that all of the senior engineering and medical cadet classes were already beginning to gather as well; the engineers to the right of the SF cadets and the medics to the left. Squall quickly scanned the engineers and found Cole speaking with several other cadets. He caught Cole's attention and nodded silently to him. Cole smiled and did the same.

Everyone looked nervous and this made Squall feel slightly more relaxed about being nervous himself. He saw the girl he gave a tour to this morning and she waved to him. He gave her a slight head nod in response. Then he caught view of Quistis, dressed in her SeeD work uniform waving him over to her. She was also geared up with her weapon belts and armed with her whip and side arm. Strapped over her shoulder was a brief case meant for holding a laptop computer. It was currently open and had several folders sticking out the top. She also had a clip board with what looked like lists of cadets and their biographical information.

"Squall, over here!"

Squall nodded and marched straight over to where Quistis was standing and waited for further instructions.

"I kind of thought you'd be the first one here, even before me. Actually, I kind of thought you would have shown up yesterday evening and simply stood here all night." She released a devilish grin and chuckled a bit at her own humor.

Squall's shoulders slumped slightly as he leered back at her with a sour face.

"Funny, real funny. The jokes never stop with you do they? You should be a comedian."

"Well I have been on a roll with the Squall jokes lately."

"Whatever."

Quistis laughed for another moment then stopped suddenly when she saw the other instructors walk up to there classes. Her demeanor had instantly become more professional and soldier like.

"Ok I'm being serious now. I'll be announcing squad assignments for the exam."

Everyone else in his class stopped talking and turned their attention to Quistis.

"There are three senior cadet classes going out for SF this year which is a little smaller than usual. That being said, this class will have three squads. Each squad will be made up two three-man fire teams. After I read off the members of a fire team and the team captain, begin reorganizing into those groups."

Quistis began reading out names for fire teams and Squall anxiously awaited his name and the names of his teammates. While each cadet would be graded individually, who you were teamed up with absolutely mattered to a certain extent. Good teammates would definitely increase your chances of a higher grade but more importantly, increase your chances of survival. Squall had several cadets in mind that he hoped to be teamed up with. SF cadets that wouldn't freeze up or act recklessly, causing a lower score or something worse like serious injury. Or death.

Squall had already heard several of those cadets named and was starting to get a little apprehensive about whom he'd be going into combat with. But that feeling abruptly came to a climax as he heard his name called out by Quistis.

"Squall Leonhart, you will be with a cadet from another class; Zell Dincht. I hear he's quite a lively fellow."

_Dincht? I know that name._

He'd heard of Zell before. And then slight panic set in as the information on Zell that his memories provided flooded into his mind. Zell was the one people say can't sit still for more then five minutes at a time and never stops talking. Squall had heard some people call him _Cocaine Clown_ and _Caffeine Pill _behind his back.

_Just fucking wonderful._

"Lively!? That kid's just loud. He never shuts the hell up or calm's down. Can I switch members?"

Quistis shook her head before answering. "I'm afraid that is not possible. These squads were hand picked by Headmaster Cid and they cannot be changed so live with it. Zell was the odd man left over from class three. A big part of being SeeD SF is learning the importance of teamwork so learn to work with others."

Quistis looked off to the right of Squall and shouted over to Instructor Rainor of class two. Quistis got her attention then first pointed to her clipboard before then pointing over towards Instructor Wallace. Instructor Rainor nodded once she understood the message then got Wallace's attention and relayed the request.

Squall watched the the message travel to its destination then heard Instructor Wallace call for Zell Dincht. When Zell didn't appear, Wallace rolled his eyes and yelled even louder.

"Dincht! Get over to cadet class one right now you hyper ass-clown!"

Squall observed several cadets in class three laugh and snicker but then noticed quick movement further down the hallway. And then Squall got a good look at this kid. In the back of the group was a spiky blonde-haired kid in his cadet uniform with some sort of tribal tattoo on the left side of his face. Squall recognized him as the kid Seifer and his posse had ticketed earlier. He was a little shorter than Squall, with an athletic, muscular build that was slightly thinner than Squall's own build.

Zell was currently finishing up a shadow fight with himself, throwing kicks and punches into the air before heading over. Instead of walking up to the front, Zell opted to do back flips all the way up to where Squall stood before performing one last flip landing him on his feet with his back to Squall. He turned to Squall and flashed a big grin and gave him a thumb up gesture.

Squall released a defeated sigh.

_Has to be coked up..._

Zell walked up to Squall and extended his hand to shake. "Wow! I'm with the great Squall Leonhart. I hear about you and Seifer all the time. I'm Zell Dincht with a 'T' on the end. I'm a CQC specialist. I like to say that with these hands and feet I'm as violent as the 'T' is silent."

"Did you honestly just say that out loud?" Squall asked rhetorically.

The mortified look on Squall's face was a statement in of itself. He continued to ignore Zell's outstretched hand and flashed Quistis a dirty look. She had heard Zell's introduction rhyme and currently had both hands over her mouth, trying desperately not to start laughing at Squall situation. Squall was not amused

_I'm paired up with a clown._

After another second Zell got the hint and slowly retracted his hand. An awkward silence set in and Zell quickly tried to break it.

"I'm also trained in stealth movements and quiet takedowns using my trusty dagger." Zell patted a longer dagger on the right side of his belt with his right hand.

Still nothing.

"So you don't like Seifer right?"

Again Squall said nothing in response. Quistis looked at Squall and shook her head. "Squall, as you can see, Zell is trained primarily in unarmed combat. His fists and feet are his primary weapons but he's also good with a knife."

"That's right. I believe that unarmed combat is the basis for all other combat. Only a fool trusts his life completely to a weapon." Zell held up his hands which were gloved with thick padded leather gauntlets that had metal strips sewed into them.

Squall scoffed just loud enough for both Zell and Quistis to hear.

"I'll remember you said that when someone is rushing you with a sword or a spear," he retorted under his breath.

Zell heard him and grinned right before making his next statement. "So I heard Seifer whooped your ass good this morning."

Squall immediately fired back with a fierce denial. "We weren't fighting damn it! We were only training."

Zell chuckled slightly and leaned in closer to Squall. "I bet you he doesn't look at it that way. I mean you two are the only gunblade users at Garden so everyone is always keeping an eye on you and him. Talk about major pressure. Anyway, I'm just messing with you; just trying to get you to say something. Seifer's a D-bag and everybody knows it. Just blow him off when he's being a dick."

"Look Zell, its none of your-"

"Business!" Quistis finished with a snort of laughter.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't help it. And by the way fellows, that Seifer you're talking about, he is your fire team leader."

Both Zell and Squall turned to Quistis in disbelief. Zell threw up his arms in protest. Squall appeared outraged.

"You're shitting me right?" Zell asked in a pleading tone.

Quistis put her hand up slowly and gave them a look of condolence. "I'm afraid not guys. Sorry about that but there isn't anything I can do. Seifer, are you here?"

"Son of a bitch," Squall muttered under his breath.

Squall watched Seifer, Fujin and Raijin walk up the steps of the front entrance and join them by the directory. Seifer stood and glared at the two of them, his posse mates flanking his right and left sides. Squall noticed he didn't have his cadet uniform on. Defiant as always, he wore his white trench coat on over his vest but had changed into dark colored BDU pants.

_Great, he's got those two idiots with him._

Quistis picked up on the tension immediately. It was thick enough to cut through with a knife. "Seifer, you will be in the fire team with Squall and Zell. You will be the fire team leader. The three of you will be Fire Team Four in Squad B. Good luck."

Seifer took one look at them and laughed then turned to Quistis. "Instructor, I hate it when people wish me luck. Save your luck for some amateur who needs it." Raijin and Fujin laughed and nodded and nodded in agreement.

Quistis raised an eyebrow and looked Seifer square in the eye. "Ok then. Seifer, good luck. Oh and by the way, you are losing points for the outfit."

Zell chuckled slightly and even Squall let a small grin go. Seifer was completely taken back by her comment and turned back to Raijin. "Add Instructor Trepe to the list."

Squall gave Seifer a look.

_What list? What the hell is he talking about?_

Quistis ignored his comments and proceeded. "Well then, the three of you will be Fire Team Four of Squad B. Remember that teamwork is of the utmost importance. I will be the instructor directly in charge of your team. I suggest the three of you start to plan out how you want to work together."

Quistis turned her attention back to the other cadets and started giving out the rest of the team assignments.

Seifer turned his attention to Zell and Squall. "Listen up assholes! Teamwork means following my orders and staying the hell out of my way. That's rule number one got it?"

Zell was about to protest with some colorful profanity when he heard one of the instructors yell.

"Headmaster on deck!"

Everyone immediately ceased conversation and turned towards the front standing at attention. They watched as Cid Kramer walked around the bend of the hall up to the mass of cadets.

Headmaster Cid was an average sized man, maybe an inch or two shorter than Squall with short brown hair, blue eyes and glasses. Squall knew from reading about him that Cid was forty-five years old and a former military veteran himself of the Balamb army. Cid was the founder of Balamb Garden and had created it towards the end of the First Sorceress War after his honorable discharge from the military. But those days had been long gone and the shape Cid was in showed it. He was slightly over weight and was dressed in brown pants with a red vest over a white dress shirt and green tie. He didn't look anything like a soldier. As a matter of fact, Squall always believed he looked more like a librarian or some sort of accountant.

Behind Cid stood General Lucious Crace, the highest ranking SF officer at Balamb Garden and right hand man to the Headmaster. The General was the complete opposite of Cid. To say that the two men were in different leagues when it came to ability and appearance would do Crace no justice. Squall ventured that it would be more accurate to say that they were in different universes. The General was a professional man in his late thirties who was tall, probably around 6'3 in height, and well built with dark brown hair and eyes. He always seemed to give off an aura that commanded respect from his peers. He was literally a pillar of strength, discipline and intimidation. Both his uniform and appearance were always flawless. Squall was not ashamed to say that he admired General Crace and used him as a reference point for emulation. His demeanor and the manner in which he carried himself earned Crace nicknames like the _Warrior Monk _and the _Battle Deity_. Next to Cid, Crace looked like some sort of mythical sentinel with that same silent stern look he always had on his face. He was armed with a pair of weapons which he dual wielded in combat; a rapier and shorter parrying dagger. They were both jet black in color with flawlessly polished blades. Squall remembered watching several videos of General Crace take on and easily kill the most powerful monsters kept in the training center by himself.

Cid stepped forward and took a look around at his cadets before starting his speech.

"Morning cadets. How is everyone doing? You all look ready. I know today has been a long time coming for everyone here. And I know that today's exam is the culmination of years of training. I want to say upfront that its ok to be nervous. And its ok to be scared even. These are normal feelings for soldiers."

Cid began to pace back a forth as he spoke.

"As you are aware, this exam will have three SF classes, three engineer classes and two medic classes participating; divided into three separate MOS platoons. The platoons are divided into your classes then squads and finally your fire teams. You will be proceeding to a real combat zone. Obviously, the battles will be for real. Life and death, victory and defeat, honor and disgrace…these are all parts of the life you have chosen. Each one of these go hand and hand, there is only one way or the other."

Cid suddenly stopped pacing then crossed his arms and lowered his head. He was solemn faced and almost seemed to hesitate speaking any further.

"I know you are all nervous. I wish there was something I could say to ease your nerves but there isn't. I wish I could say something to prepare you for what you will see and do. But there is no way to romanticize war. There is no watering it down. It would be wrong of me to do so anyway. Watching your comrades die will not be easy. Killing real enemies instead of sparing with training partners will not be easy. But I have faith in all of you. Faith that you will survive. Faith that you will succeed. Are you still up for it?

All the cadets yelled in unison. "Sir yes Sir!"

"Good," Cid replied. He silently turned back towards General Crace nodded slightly then took a step back. The General took a step forward and spoke with his usual commanding tone.

"You will be accompanied by nine SeeD SF soldiers who will go with you on your mission. Should you fail at you objective, they shall get the job done. They always do. Learn from them and listen to their commands because it will help you to accomplish the mission. Should you succeed in your tasks, you will become warriors of Balamb Garden. You will join the ranks of the elite SeeD Special Forces. You will be the best of the best. Now go to these proving grounds and show us you are worthy."

General Crace then saluted the cadets. The cadets in return saluted the General and the Headmaster then broke ranks and began making their way out front were several small, green military buses waited to transport them to Balamb City's Enell Bay. As Squall turned to follow the rest of the crowd, he heard the General call his name out. He hadn't ever spoken directly to the _Warrior Monk_ before and was surprised he even knew who Squall was. Squall immediately walked over to him and saluted before standing at attention.

"Squall I heard that you fought Ifrit yesterday and forced him to a stalemate. Is that true?"

"Sir, I only briefly had the upper hand before Ifrit turned the tables. He had me at the end. I don't know if it would be fair to say I fought him to a true stalemate."

"And yet you came closer to defeating him than even I did back when I was a cadet. And now you and I are the only ones to have done so. I am very proud of you. It is my hope that both you and Seifer join our ranks as we are yet to have any SeeDs who are gunbladers. The gunblade itself is a more ancient weapon from the last years of Centran empire that only a hand full of people can use today. The art of the gunblade is almost all but lost. I believe there is only one small school remaining."

"Master Tyrial Strite's school. It's where both me and Almasy studied." Squall commented.

The General nodded and reached over to put his hand on Squall's shoulder before looking him square in the eyes.

"I believe Ifrit appearing before you means that you have an important destiny here. But do not lose focus on this present task. I believe you have greatness within you Squall. Now go and earn this."

"Sir yes Sir."

Squall saluted again then took off at a fast jog towards the bus. He wasn't one for opening up to people or even listening to anyone but he was glad to have had the General speak to him. More determined then ever now, Squall made his way over to where the bus and his destiny awaited him.

Quistis, Zell, Squall and Seifer occupied the rear of their bus. It had been a fairly quiet trip so far and Zell couldn't take it. He was nervous enough as it was and this silence was really beginning spook him out even more. To get from Balamb Garden to Balamb City was about forty-five minutes long and Zell needed to talk to someone. He didn't really know Instructor Trepe that well and he sure as hell wasn't going to talk to Seifer so that left as Squall. Zell had heard that he was very talented with the gunblade and very hard-working in general but quite anti-social. He decided he'd give a conversation with Squall a shot.

"Yo Squall, show me your gunblade will ya?"

Squall sat in his seat with his elbows perched up on his knees while he steadied his gaze on the floor in front of him. His gunblade was sheathed in its scabbard on his duty belt.

_Man, he is anti-social. But then again this is the Field Exam and I suppose he's just thinking about that._

"Can I get a single peek? Just a peek," Zell asked as he gestured with his fingers.

Again, no response came from his stoic classmate and Zell became somewhat irritated that Squall wouldn't even look up at him to say no.

"Tch, fine then, be that way," he scoffed.

"Why are you being quiet? Say something will ya? Whats on your mind bro?"

Squall finally looked up. "Nothing Zell. Nothing is on my mind. I don't have anything to say."

Squall heard Quistis start to chuckle and gave her a look. He ignored her laughs and looked back down to the floor. He really wished she would stop acting like she knew him or something. He didn't need her to play shrink or councilor to him.

Since he couldn't think of anything else to do Zell stood and started to shadow fight again. He always had lots of energy when he was nervous, even more so then usual. Dancing in place, he threw a few short punches before the commotion grabbed Seifer's attention.

"Cut that shit out already, it's really annoying…chicken wuss." Seifer shot off that trademark smirk of his.

Zell stopped what he was doing and glared at Seifer. "What did you call me? I dare you to say that again Seifer!"

"Knock it off right now! You two are supposed to be teammates so start acting like it," Quistis commanded.

Seifer laughed and waved his hand in their direction. He didn't care who he pissed off but signaled he'd back down for now. Zell composed himself and sat back down in his seat, crossed his arms and looked out the window. He didn't know how he was going to be able to deal with all this while the biggest jack ass he knew was his team leader.

"Instructor, who was that other girl in the Infirmary this morning? She was in the room next to mine," Squall inquired.

He still didn't know who that girl was or how she had managed to talk to him through the glass. He figured that maybe Quistis had seen her and would know who she is. Plus it would take his mind off the exam...slightly.

Quistis brought her hand up to her chin with and gave Squall perplexed stare. "Squall, I didn't see anyone other than you and the doctor. Is there a problem?"

"No, not really."

Seifer began to chuckle again. "Oh this is just great. I got a guy who's afraid of his own shadow and another guy whose balls just dropped. My teammates are Chicken Wuss and Captain Puberty!"

"I swear to Hyne, I am going to kill him," Zell muttered over to Squall.

"I would not stop you," Squall replied.

Quistis put her face in her hand and shook her head. This was going to be one long ride. "How about we all play the quiet game until we get to Balamb City. No one talk to anyone else."

* * *

It was shortly after 8am when the bus rolled into Balamb City. The capital was the biggest city in Balamb and was booming with activity. To the north, shops, restaurants and stores of all sorts lined both sides of the street while thousands of pedestrians littered the sidewalks. The northern part of the city also had three huge malls, several large high-rise buildings housing major businesses and Balamb Government Hall. It was a huge complex where both the legislative and executive bodies of the government conducted their policy making activities and ran the country. It also housed the highest courts in Balamb, the city's police HQ and one of the city's nine firehouses. To the south and west were all the residential sections, fishing businesses and peers and a large military base, Fort Stalton. Altogether, Balamb City made up the heart and soul of the nation.

The bus continued to drive west as it approached Fort Stalton. This was where Balamb Garden housed most of its naval vessels. It was a rather large complex; the Balamb military not only housed most of its naval fleet there but also most of its air force as well. A large air strip, control tower and several huge garages housing fighter jets and bombers occupied one side while the other side was reserved for the gigantic docks needed to house the few naval warships Balamb had. It also had designated docks, garages and bunkers for Garden's naval and air vessels. Barracks, warehouses and offices were also located all throughout the base creating a military maze of sorts.

After moving through the front gateway, the bus made its way south down to the peer where their transportation waited. The bus pulled into a parking space and came to a stop. Everyone exited the bus and stretched out before heading down to peer five. Prepped and ready for combat were a large group of CV129 "Barracuda" Amphibious APC's ready for deployment. The Barracuda was a blue colored water vessel that used hovering technology to propel it at very fast speeds as it flew across the ocean. Each one could carry up to ten troops along with seating for officers and a separate bridge for the pilot and copilot. It was armed with a fifty caliber mounted machine gun on its front top and a small payload of guided rockets on its backside.

"These ships are badass," Zell commented.

"It's the standard naval vehicle for troop deployment that both Balamb Garden and the Balamb military use," Squall stated.

They both heard Seifer walk up and scoff.

"No turning back now Zell. You're not gonna wuss out on me are you?" Seifer asked.

"Kiss my ass Seifer," Zell retorted.

Seifer continued to chuckle as the entire group made their way over to the ships. Several SeeD SF were already there waiting for the Cadets to arrive.

Several of them began shouting orders. "Hurry it up! Get your asses down here on the double! I want Squad A in the first Barracuda, Squad B in the second and Squad C in the last."

Other SeeDs shouted similar orders to the other two SF classes. Seifer turned to Squall right as they started to make their way down to the boats.

"Don't disappoint me now Squall."

Squall gave him a perplexed look in response. Seifer said nothing else and ran ahead of him. Squall had no idea what Seifer had meant by that but figured it had something to do with their "personal rivalry".

All SF cadets picked up the pace and sprinted over to the boarding platforms. They got into their proper groups and boarded their assigned transports. The inside of the APCs weren't a tight fit but weren't all that spacious either. There was enough room in the holding area to accommodate the troops and their weapons. In the back of the holding area a large monitor was mounted up for briefings. All six cadets of Squad B took their seats while Quistis remained standing by the monitor. The small door to the cockpit opened suddenly and a female SF SeeD with dark colored hair stepped into view. She seemed to ignore everyone's presence except for Quistis and walked over to where she was standing. The two formally saluted each other.

"Hello Lt. Trepe."

"Good morning Captain Zang. Theses are the members of Squad B."

Cpt. Xu Zang turned her attention to the six students sitting before her. The three students from Fire Team Three introduced themselves first then Fire Team Four. Zell and Squall both stood at attention. Zell was the first to go.

"Ma'am, it's nice to meet you."

"Pleased to meet you ma'am," Squall said.

Xu nodded to the two of them then turned her attention towards Seifer who neither stood nor bothered to look up.

"How many times has it been now Seifer?"

"This will be my second fiasco; I mean attempt to pass this exam sweetheart."

"I am not your sweetheart Seifer."

"Captain, I know you like me but all this 'hard to get stuff' isn't going to get you into my pants any faster."

"Oh my God, I think I just threw up in my mouth a little bit."

"Ignore him," Quistis suggested

"Indeed," Xu stated.

She moved past all of them and made her way to the display monitor. After switching it on she grabbed the remote then turned her attention back towards the Cadets.

"This is the current situation and your mission. As all of you are probably aware, seventy-two hours ago the Republic of Galbadia invaded the Dollet Dukedom in an act of war. Our intelligence indicates that G-army forces have several battalions supported by both light and heavy armor plus artillery support. Their goal seems to have been to reach and take the capital city of Dollet, Chartersville, where most of the invasion force is currently located. What they plan to do next is unknown. Our client, the Dollet Dukedom Parliament, hired Garden eighteen hours ago to assist their military forces in retaking the capital city of Chartersville. They believe that once Chartersville has been retaken, their own military forces will be able to drive the remaining Galbadian forces from the country."

Xu clicked the remote once and brought up a map of Chartersville. Then she brought up another diagram showing Dollet and Galbadian troop movements.

"Approximately forty-nine hours into the battle, Dollet forces abandoned the last remaining positions around their Parliament House located in the center of the city. They then withdrew to the nearby mountains; Dollet's elite forces, the Army Silver Knights, managed to escort both the Prime Minister and most of the House of Parliament to safety. They are currently reorganizing their troops and remaining armor. A portion of the SeeD engineering and medic cadets will be deployed to assist these forces."

Xu brought up another image of map of the capital city.

"Now on to your objectives; SeeD Special Forces are to land and drive a wedge through the center of the city, acting like a spear point and cutting Galbadian forces in half. At that same time, Dollet and SeeD forces in the mountains surrounding Chartersville will attack simultaneously, hitting both sides of the city at once. We will be making our landing from the south at Lapin Beach. Several other Barracudas loaded with more SeeD engineers and medics will meet up with our battle group out at sea but will land farther down on Lapin. Reports indicate that G-army forces there are limited since most of the fighting is occurring in the northern parts of the city. As I said before, your objectives will be to drive a wedge through the center of the city then hold your positions until Dollet forces destroy the remaining Galbadian presence within the capital. Are there any questions?"

Seifer raised his hand and Xu sighed before nodding to Seifer and bracing herself.

"Could you repeat all that, I didn't hear you the first time."

"Are there any other questions?" Xu was determined to not let Seifer get under her skin.

"Has anyone bothered wondering why Garden has us wearing our school uniforms to an actual battlefield instead of BDUs? And why we aren't equipped with body armor or firearms."

"A decent question," Quistis began. "Dollet knows we are using this conflict as an exam opportunity for our cadets. And as such they know they paid for a small group of SeeDs but are getting a large group of cadets along with them. More fighters for them. But they also hired us knowing that they'd have a visible uniformed SeeD presence show up in in their city. One that the Galbadians would recognize and fear. SeeD has a shock and awe effect. Its part of the reason people hire us."

One of the SeeDs from team three raised his hand. "What about firearms?"

"You're SF cadets and as such you are being tested on use of your primary melee weapons in combination with the magic abilities you have available to you. Therefore you are forbidden from taking firearms from Garden into battle."

"What's our exit plan?" Squall asked.

Xu stepped forward again.

"SeeD SF will fall back Fire Team by Fire Team to the Lapin Beach. The order to withdraw takes priority above all else. Do not forget this. Whether or not Dollet can take Chartersville back has no bearing on how long the cadets will stay. Remember, this is just an exam and we will have other SeeD SF along with you to finish the job if necessary. Our goal here is to give you one last test by putting you on a live battlefield for a small amount of time. Are there any other questions?"

No one else raised their hand so Xu gave Quistis a nod before returning back to the cockpit. Quistis raised her hand to get everyone's attention.

"Ok people we will be landing shortly so prepare yourselves. Be prepared to encounter fighting the moment we land. Your SEMP radios are prepped and charged. Double check that they are set to channel 7A. You can grab them now. "

Squall reached behind him and grabbed his radio, ear mic and throat mic and put them on. SEMP stood for Short-burst ElectroMagnetic Pulse. They were expensive, high end radios that gave SeeD the ability to communicate directly over short distances and at longer longer distances if they had relay towers in that particular area. These were necessary because of the GRIPH, the Global Radio Interference PHenomena; a mysterious global occurrence that started almost twenty years ago. It caused most radio transmissions on the planet to get jammed for long periods of time, rendering any type of radio frequency or cell phone service useless. The SEMP radios were strong enough to get transmissions through unaided at short distances.

Zell leaned over to Squall. "This mission sounds important."

"It sounds boring," Seifer retorted.

"Ok, I've had it up to here with your shit Almasy!"

"Hey! Save that aggression for the _Badians_!" Quistis thundered.

Zell nodded his head in agreement then sat back down next to Squall. Squall agreed with Quistis on this one. They would be landing soon and then their lives would be in each other's hands. Whatever problems they had with each other would have to wait until they got back.

About an hour later the amphibious assault group was nearing Dollet. All six cadets checked their gear a final time and prepared for the landing. Then Seifer broke the silence.

"Squall, go top side to the gun emplacement and see what is going on outside," Seifer ordered.

"Fine." He knew Seifer didn't care what was going on, he just liked to give out orders.

Without another word Squall got up for his seat, grabbed a small transparent outline and a photograph of the landing site then headed over to the ladder that led up to the fifty cal.

Squall opened the hatch and pulled himself up and out of the opening. The sun was rising on the horizon, providing vibrant shades of pink, red, orange and yellow. He could smell the salty aroma from the ocean as the craft jetted along.

Looking to his right, he saw at least ten other Barracudas zipping along the water. Ahead of him he could see the beginnings of what was the landing site. Recognizing some of the land marks, he held the photo up in front of him then lined up the transparent outline against it. The outline showed different targets and objectives located in on the landing site. Squall studied it for a moment before lowering the sheets and gazing off into the distance. Focusing his gaze down on the beach as the wind wiped his hair back; he saw clear explosions and tracer rounds from gun fire. He remembered what General Crace had told him before he left.

_I was born for this. This is my destiny. I will succeed._

He could now hear the faint sounds gunfire and explosions getting louder as he got closer. Deciding he had seen enough, Squall quickly got back down into the holding area so he could get ready to hit the beach running. When he got down there he threw the sheets aside and saw that Seifer and Zell were already standing at the bay doors in the front of the Barracuda. The cadets all casted protect spells on themselves to give them some cover while they ran the length of the beach. Squall heard Xu's voice come in over the loud speaker.

"ETA, one minute!"

"Galbadian machine gun nests detected!" the copilot yelled.

"Launch rockets!" the pilot ordered.

"Launching rockets!"

Squall felt a small tremor cascade through the hull as the rockets fired off and heard the screaming of the projectiles tearing through the air. The other Barracudas followed suit and fired off their rockets towards Lapin Beach. The rockets pelted the area, causing massive explosions and throwing shrapnel in a blanketing pattern. Several machine gun nests and their occupants were instantly obliterated. But a few remained on the section of beach they were about to land on.

The red alarm light then went off another signaling they were about to land. All other lights in the holding area went off leaving the cadets in almost total darkness. They could all barely just see each other but all six, including both Seifer and Squall, gave each other one last silent nod as if to say, "make it back alive." Seconds later Squall felt the whole craft jump as the Barracuda jumped a concrete artificial levy then continued on towards the beach.

The Barracuda hit the beach and cut threw it with little resistance before coming to a complete stop. Half a second later the bay doors opened up and Seifer, Zell and Squall rushed out into a hail of machine gun fire from farther in towards the city. The three of them jumped into a shell crater and hit the sand faces first.

The bay doors of the Barracuda had closed and the sea craft was now slowly starting to back out into the water. The Barracudas were to stay back far enough so that they were out of range of the machine guns but still close enough to get back in to extract the cadets.

Meanwhile Fire Team Three had hit the ground running and went right as planned. Squall and Zell watched them run another thirty yards before jumping into an explosion crater themselves. And then time seemed to slow down as tunnel vision set in for them both. They watched helplessly as a single Galbadian rocket crew further down the beach fired off an RPG that flew straight into Team Three's crater. The resulting explosion blew apart one of the cadets and flung another back into the ocean. The remaining cadet crawled out of the crater, burned and wounded and covered in gore. When he saw his team mate's obliterated body, they watched the cadet panic; screaming as he tried to run for the boat.

_NO!_

Squall was too far away to bother yelling. Again, both he and Zell helplessly watched the terrified cadet run for his life and as he did so, the protect spell he casted stayed oriented to his front. This left his back unprotected, causing him to be mercilessly cut down by machine gun fire from G-army machine gunners.

Squall gritted his teeth and squeezed his fist; there was nothing they could do for them. Then the thunderous metallic sounds of ricochets of machine gun fire bouncing off the Barracudas snapped them both out of it. And just like that they had to forget what they'd just seen for now and focus back on the mission.

More machine gun fire hit the sand in front of their crater and brought Squall's attention back to the machine gun nests in front of them. He and Seifer peaked out over the crater and spotted two remaining machine gun nests in their immediate area while Zell kept his head down. Squall guessed that between the them and the nests was nearly twenty-five to thirty yards of open ground. Seifer looked back over at Squall who shook his head. There was no way to make it up any farther until those machine guns had been taken out.

Seifer put his hand to his throat mic and pressed the send button. "Fire Team Four to Boat Three, pinned down by machine gun fire. Request fire support!"

Back on board the ship Quistis received the transmission.

"Copy direct fire team. Stand by."

Quistis and the copilot used the on board cameras to observe the positions of the machine gun nests. They located the crater that the cadets were in and then pinpointed the location of the machine guns ahead of them. Once they had the locations locked, Quistis ordered the co-pilot to take them out. "We cover them until they're out of our sight."

About a second later the thunderous cracks of gunfire from the fifty caliber machine guns on board the Barracuda engulfed Squall's ears. He looked ahead as the fire support hit its mark. The two machine guns and the crews manning them exploded, sending blood, gore and pieces of the enemy soldiers in all directions.

"Move out!" Seifer ordered.

Seifer jumped out of the makeshift foxhole and started rushing up towards the end of the beach, Squall and Zell right behind him. When the three of them approached the last part of the beach they spotted a large stair case leading up to the street. Zell slowed down slightly to observe what was left of the machine gun nests. A large red blood splatter painted the stone wall behind the nest and the sand in the immediate area was littered with body parts and bits of metal. Zell started to zone out just a little bit when a hand grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. Squall's eyes came face to face with Zell's who looked at him for a moment then shook him in a rough manner.

"Get your head back in the game!"

Squall released Zell and started up the stairs with out missing another beat. Seifer, whom hadn't been phased at all by the carnage, was already at the top. When they hit the street they took in the destruction around them. The shops and stores that lined the sides of the street seemed to have been decimated by gunfire and artillery. The bodies of fallen G-army and Dollet soldiers and bodies of Dollet citizens were scattered everywhere. Dozens of cars had been destroyed; some nothing more then smoldering shells that lined the streets along with what appeared to be several armored vehicles and tanks from both sides.

Seifer pointed to the street directly in front of them. "This street goes north all the way up to the city square. We are going to fight our way up to it then hold that position. Move out."

All three took off down the street heading north. As they proceeded it was obvious that this area had seen some heavy fighting due to the severe damage to all the vehicles and buildings surrounding them. They had just hopped over a destroyed car when they heard the doors to one of the shops to the right of them fly open. Out came four Galbadian infantry regulars; these soldiers were clad in their blue BDUs with metallic-colored armor over their chest and soldiers. On their heads they wore a sophisticated combat helmet with a "tri-sights" visor. It covered the eyes and had three separate lenses that provided the user with night vision, infrared and normal sight abilities as well as a zoom function. Squall recognized immediately that this was a single G-army fire team because it had one rifleman, one machine gunner and two "chargers". Chargers were soldiers armed with a standard issue long sword or spear instead of a firearm that used basic level protect spells for cover.

As soon as they saw the three cadets they broke off and attempted to take cover. Seifer was a second faster and got within striking range of the rifleman. He swung his sword, connecting with the soldiers neck, cutting his throat completely out. The soldier fell to the ground in a heap. The machine gunner dropped to one knee and began to open fire on Seifer's position. Seifer managed to turn just in time so that the rounds connected with the protect spell he had cast. As the bullets bounced off Seifer's force field it began to change from the color blue to orange and then red. This was a sign that it was beginning to fail. Seifer quickly rolled to his left and took cover behind a destroyed sedan. He focused his energy and jumped up out of cover to throw a wind spell at his opponent. His aim was on target and the gust of wind knocked the machine gunner off his feet throwing him back several yards. Seifer rushed towards the fallen Galbadian then stabbed the soldier through the chest before he could get his bearings backs.

As Seifer finished off his opponent the two chargers, both armed with swords, rushed Squall and Zell. Zell rushed towards the one on the right and soared into the air, pushing his foot out as he did so. The soldier began to raise his sword but was knocked off his feet when Zell's jump kick hit him square in the chest. The soldier hit the ground and lost his sword but managed to get back to his feet and tackle Zell to the ground. The fight turned into a wrestling match as both fighters rolled around on the ground throwing kicks and punches while trying to maneuver behind each other.

Meanwhile Squall's opponent rushed him with his sword raised high. He let out an earsplitting war cry and brought his blade down towards Squall's skull. Squall reacted immediately by bringing his own blade up to block the attack and stepping to his left, letting his opponent step by under his own momentum. Through trained reflex, Squall wheeled around on his heel, raised his weapon and brought it down against the enemy soldier's back, slicing through the soft armor that protected his back. The Galbadian soldier squealed in pain and hit the ground. He rolled over onto his back and his helmet fell off revealing a boy with green eyes who couldn't be any older than nineteen. They stared at each other for a moment before anger spread across the soldiers face.

"Fuck you SeeD pig!"

He reached for a side arm latched onto his right leg. Squall screamed and drove Revolver down into his opponent's neck, almost severing his head from his body. The teen's eyes rolled back into his skull and his eyes shut forever.

Zell continued to wrestle with his opponent and finally managed to get an opening and casted thunder to electrocute him. Then, wrapping both arms around his head, Zell snapped the soldier's head to the right, breaking his neck. The soldier went limp and fell to the ground. Zell was sucking wind and looked up at Squall who had taken a knee next to the soldier he had just killed. Zell ran over to see if he was injured.

"Squall, you ok man?"

"Yea, I'm fine I guess."

"Yo! Wake up!" Seifer shouted.

"I know this is your first real battle but this shit is life or death. That Badian would have killed you if you hadn't killed him first so get over it and let's go. We still haven't reached the square yet. You're soldiers now."

Zell gave Seifer a poisonous look then reached down and helped Squall up to his feet. Squall knew Seifer was right and that he couldn't let this get to him. He knew that he would have to eventually take life at some point but he also knew his first kill would be his toughest. Shaking it off, he nodded to Zell and together with Seifer they continued north along the road.

They had to run several more blocks nonstop and had fought three more Galbadian fire teams, ensuring their demise through the use of Hyperion, Revolver, fists and feet. They wanted to save their magical stamina in case they needed it later.

The team came to a brief pause in their forward progress by a restaurant called the Nautilus. They hadn't run into any more G-army patrols over the last ten blocks and Squall was beginning to think that there were no Galbadians left in this portion of the city. While they had been running Squall had spotted other cadet fire teams and even a few SeeDs While at a distance. As they quickly tried to catch their breath, Seifer stepped forward and began to shout out loud.

"Hey you Badian pussies, come on out! I'm right here!"

He turned back to Zell and Squall. "The center square is up ahead, let's go."

Seifer took off north leaving Squall and Zell exchanging frustrated glances.

"What a fucking idiot."

"We better keep up with him."

They took off at a medium pace keeping Seifer in sight. After another two blocks they rounded a bend and came upon the square. The Dollet Parliament House was still a bit further west of their location. Directly north of them was a large building that looked like a night club that had a gigantic flatscreen TV mounted up above its entrance. Several Galbadian light-armored battle SUVs blocked the road going east. They were a little larger then Garden's CV42 Gladiator and could hold up to eight soldiers where as the Gladiator could only hold five at the most. A large water fountain decorated the center of the square and set up a nice view for the large restaurant to Squall's right that had twenty or thirty tables set up outside.

Zell walked ahead to the fountain and turned his back to lean against its side. "Well I think the square is secure. All we have to do now is-"

He was cut off by a scream that came from directly behind him. A single Galbadian soldier jumped out from behind the fountain and hit Zell in the back of the head with the stock of his rifle. Zell hit the ground in a daze and the enemy soldier didn't waste a moment trying to line up an execution shot. Before Seifer could even turn around Squall's reflex's kicked in and he launched his gunblade at the soldier like a spear. Revolver flew through the air and nailed the enemy soldier right in the chest a tenth of a second before he squeezed the trigger. The Galbadian coughed up blood then sank below the water line in the fountain.

Seifer let out an approving cackle. "Now the square is secure."

Squall ignored his comment and walked over to Zell who was struggling to get up. He had a decent sized gash across the back of his head that was bleeding profusely. Squall stood him up and cast a cure spell on him which caused the gash to close up somewhat.

"Damn that was fast Squall. You got some reflexes. Thanks for the cure spell too. My head's not bleeding anymore but I still feel dizzy like I got my bell rung."

Squall shrugged his thanks off and walked over to the fountain. The dead soldier half floated with Revolver sticking out of his chest. Squall wrapped his hand around the gunblade and yanked it out of his chest. A new pool of blood formed in the water as the soldier began to sink completely.

"Well then we are on standby until something else happens. How boring is that?" Seifer groaned.

Zell walked over to Squall. "The Badians should be getting flanked by now in a counter attack by right?"

"I would imagine so. We did our part and helped drive a wedge through the center of the city."

Zell reached for his mic and clicked the send button. "Fire Team Four to Boat 3, we've reached the fountain."

Only static came through the mic. The cadets all looked at each other. They knew they were already too far away for any radio transmissions. They were on their own for the time being.

The sounds of fighting had stopped a few minutes earlier and left behind an eerie silence. The sound of a small golden retriever wandering out from behind a car made the three cadets jump slightly. It walked over to Zell and sniffed him a few times before losing interest then walked over to Squall and lied down at his feet. Squall gave the dog a quick glance before going back to watching the surrounding area for more Galbadian soldiers.

Out of nowhere the distant sounds of gunfire, explosions and artillery fire erupted. Seifer looked up and walked northeast to where the sounds seemed to be originating.

"Sounds like its starting up again. I hope some of it comes our way. I wouldn't mind seeing more action." Seifer brought his hands up to his mouth and began to shout. "Hey Badians, we're over here! Come on out already."

Zell turned to Seifer. "Why do you have to do that? I'm mean bored too but it's not like they can actually hear you. And besides, we don't need more enemy troops attacking our position."

"Stop being a chicken shit Zell."

Before Zell could insult him back the dog started to howl and then took off. All three cadets took cover behind a car parked by the restaurant and waited. A minute later a single Galbadian rifleman came into view and looked around for several seconds before gesturing back behind him. He took off running up the street that went north up into the mountains. Right behind him a line of more Galbadian troops followed as they moved up the street.

Squall observed their numbers. "Looks like a whole platoon of Galbadian regulars."

"Yea but where are they going?" Zell asked.

All three cadets stepped out from behind the car and looked up the same road the enemy soldiers had taken. They had all piled into three of their armored vehicles and appeared to be heading out of the city and towards the outlying mountains. What looked like a colossal sized radio tower appeared way off in the distance at the summit. A devious grin spread across Seifer's face.

"They are heading off to our next destination." He declared while pointing his gunblade up towards the tower. "We are to take and secure that radio tower."

Zell's eyes bolted wide open. "We can't leave the square Seifer! We were given orders to hold this position!"

"Didn't you just say you were bored?"

"I'm not that bored! And we have no radio communications with the Barracuda." Zell turned to Squall for support. "Squall, say something man! Help me out here."

Squall turned his back to them and thought for a moment in silence. He knew that they had been given orders to hold the position but Seifer was their team leader and he had to follow Seifer's orders as much as possible. He turned back to Zell and Seifer.

"I stand by our leader's decision."

Seifer's grin grew even larger and he walked over Squall and put his hand on his shoulder. "Ready to see some more action, eh Leonhart?"

Squall slapped his hand off his should before answering. "I just want to test my skills. Thanks to you, I feel like I can take on anyone, even if they do fight dirty like you do."

"Trust me, you will thank me when the time comes."

"Hey, what's up with you two, you're all friendly with each other all of a sudden. I thought you were bitter rivals," Zell asked.

"Don't worry about us Zell. Now are you coming or what?"

"Look guys, this isn't a regular battle. It's an exam and it's meant to test our combat skills but also our ability to listen and follow orders. I'm telling ya, we have to stay here!"

"Fine, then stay here and be a boy scout and a chicken wuss."

"What did you say asshole!?"

Squall cued in before this got out of hand. He walked over to Zell and put his hand on his should and gave it a squeeze. "Zell, just ignore Seifer alright." He turned back to Seifer. "We are both going along ok? Just stop being such a prick and let's go."

"Fair enough...Fire Team Four will move up the mountain and secure the tower. Let's get moving. "

He turned and took off up the road that led to the communications tower. Squall followed suit and Zell took off after them a few seconds later.

_Here we go..._

* * *

It had taken Fire Team Four twenty minutes to get to the edge of town. Ahead of them was a long stone bridge that connected the city to the mountains. The Badian APCs were parked off to the side; obviously they were too large and heavy to cross with. Only three G-army regulars remained behind; two rifleman and a single machine gunner. They appeared to be standing around in a complacent manner, only casually walking around to patrol the area.

Seifer turned to Zell. "You've specialized in stealth and the silent dispatch of enemies. Sneak behind them and take out all three...quietly."

Zell nodded then looked at Squall. He signaled that he'd cover him with magic if need be. Zell drew his dagger and stayed low, moving behind cars and trucks and using them for cover and concealment. As he kept moving forward, he observed the three sentries begin to walk off in different directions. He could overhear their conversation.

"Lets take another quick patrol of the area," the machine gunner said. "Fan out and check the area for Dollet or SeeD forces. We cant let even one of those bastards get by. The radio tower is too important."

The other two soldiers nodded and they spread out. Zell used this opportunity to strike. He first approached the closest rifleman; getting close enough so that he was directly on the opposite side of the truck the soldier was walking by. Zell waited for him to make his way around to the front of the truck and up on to the sidewalk, placing him out of sight of the other two momentarily. Then, with out making a sound, he snuck up behind him and attacked. He reached around and cupped the solider's mouth with his left hand and simultaneously used the dagger in his right hand to slash the soldier inner right forearm. While doing this he cranked the soldier backwards and downwards. The rifleman's hand went limp and he let go of the rifle. Zell then brought the knife back up and jammed it into the soldier's neck before slashing outwards. The solider made a muffled choking sound before crumpling to a heap on the sidewalk.

Moving quickly, he saw the machine gunner walking far enough away from the other rifleman that he could run and attack him. He took off in a sprint and closed the distance between them. When he got to the enemy soldier he launched himself into the air with great force, landing on the machine gunner's back. Using his kinetic energy, he latched onto the soldier and rolled off to the right side, bringing them both down. Zell kept the roll going, rotating the soldier's body in complete roll so that Zell ended up on top of his opponent with the machine gunner face down. Zell wasted no time; he took the dagger and plunged it straight into base of the machine gunners neck. The effect was immediate, killing him instantly.

As he brought the knife back up the third soldier turned the corner of the vehicle and made eye contact with Zell. They were no more than ten feet from each other.

"Oh shit! Die SeeD!" the rifleman screamed.

But his war cry was cut off by Zell's attack. He had thrown the knife through the air, the blade impaling itself through the soldier neck. The soldier dropped to his knees, clutching his throat, desperately trying to breath. Then he slumped over to his left and did not move again.

Squall and Seifer watched Zell run over to the dead soldier and rip the knife out of his throat before cleaning the blade off on the soldier's uniform. He had killed all three sentries with out making a sound.

"Ok, that wasn't bad." Seifer stated casually. "Still a pussy though."

Fearing an ambush while crossing the bridge, they had sprinted across one at a time, making sure to cover each other. After they got to the other side with out incident, Squall began to think that maybe the Badian troops had doubled back. But then the sounds of a few bursts of gunfire reverberated down at them from further up the mountain and they doubled down on proceeding to the tower.

Ahead of them laid a stone pathway that lead up the mountain. The cadets began to double time it up the path but kept their eyes peeled; it had heavy foliage on both sides that made for a perfect ambush. About a half mile in they suddenly stopped when they started to see bodies of both Galbadian and Dollet soldiers littering the area. Squall quickly scanned the spread of the bodies. It looked liked it had been a fast and violent skirmish.

"Must have run right into each other; each side surprising the other."

Seifer and Squall drew their weapons and slowed their pace down to a light jog as they maneuvered around the bodies and up the path. Zell kept a couple steps back to guard their six.

After a few more minutes they came to the end of the path and were met by a stone steps continuing to lead straight up. They had only moved about fifty feet when Seifer noticed movement in some of the bushes to their left and signaled back to others. They took ready stances and waited for something to pop out. A moment later the black, brown and olive green colors of a Dollet camouflaged BDU came into view as s single soldier crawled out into the open. He looked dirty and was bleeding from a wound on his left side. He looked up at the cadets and let out a long painful gasp.

"Who are you people?"

Squall walked over and knelt down beside him."We are SeeD candidates from Garden. We are here to help. Can you tell us what happened?"

"Our platoon was using this location as a staging area for an assault on the city when we came under fire from their troops. We tried to fight them off but we were outnumbered. The Galbadians seemed to want to take the communications tower for some reason but it hasn't worked in years. And it's been abandoned for over ten years at this point. Its become infested with different monster species. We got attacked by a large group of Anacondaurs and suddenly it was a three sided battle. Most of my platoon was wiped out and it was the same for the G-army as well. I got thrown into some bushes and must have gotten knocked out."

Zell shook his head. "Now we got monsters to deal with!? This just keeps getting better and better."

Seifer grinned and swung Hyperion around. "That just means more action for us. Let's keep moving."

Squall nodded then turned his attention back to the injured soldier. "We are going to head up to the communication tower. Is there someplace you can hide until more of your people arrive?"

"Well I can always just crawl back into the-"

The soldier was cut off as a large form jutted forth from the bushes behind him. It was a large snake-like creature that looked like an overgrown brown cobra with horns on its sides. The creature rose up behind him to gain momentum then rushed down at the soldier with incredible speed. The Dollet soldier didn't even get a chance to turn around completely before the monster brought its head down and stuck its teeth into the soldier's neck and shoulder. The soldier made a gurgling sound before going limp. This was followed by several hisses that came from all around them.

Zell dropped into a defensive stance. "Holy shit! Its the Anacondaurs!"

Seifer pointed his weapon towards the monsters. "We're surrounded, fight them off!"

A pack of twenty Anacondaurs jumped out into the open and started to circle them. This breed of monster was far more dangerous then the Red Bats Squall had faced in the Fire Cavern. He had faced one or two of these monsters in the training center before so he had some experience against them and knew they where fast, agile and venomous.

"Keep moving up the steps!" Squall shouted.

All three cadets formed a single line parallel to the steps and started to walk backwards and up. The Anacondaurs formed a "V" shaped pattern and began advancing on them. The first one reached Squall who was in the middle. It lashed out at him and Squall viciously swung his gunblade left and right, smacking it back each time it attacked. The Anacondaur's hide was thick and tough so he was having trouble inflicting deep cuts into the monster. He responded by firing off a blast from his gun blade as the Revolver cut through monster, blowing off a large chunk of the snake's body. It slumped over and bled out.

Another snake lashed out at Zell who stood to the left of Squall. Zell ran forward a few steps and did a complete bicycle kick, catching the snake monster under the jaw with his foot. He completed the flip and landed back on his feet; the attack sent the monster flying backwards down the steps. It hit the ground with a thud but almost immediately was back up and moving back towards Zell again. Zell's jaw dropped when he saw that his attack had only stunned the creature.

"Oh shit," Zell said.

He saw a dead Dollet soldier next to him and scrambled over to him. He still had his Dollet service rifle with him, an AK-74. Zell grabbed it and one spare thirty-round box magazine. He checked the weapon for ammo then steadied his aim and opened fire. Zell's first three bursts of fire sprayed the two Anacondaurs rushing up towards him. The 7.62mm rounds tore through the flesh of the creatures causing them to shake and scream in pain before going still. Zell kept up his pattern of short controlled bursts, trying to kill as many as he could.

Seifer had managed to keep them back by firing off thunder and fire spells but was quickly becoming exhausted from it. He then jammed Hyperion into the next one that rushed him and fired off several explosive rounds of his gunblade. Seifer emptied the remaining rounds of his current mag into another snake pulled the mag and grabbed a fresh one off his ammo belt and slammed it into Hyperion. He racked the slide then heard Zell's gun continued fire and began searching around for his own rifle. To his right was a fallen G-army soldier who still had his Galbadian G36 on him. Seifer immediately ran to the dead soldier and picked his rifle up. He could see through the transparent magazine that it was almost completely full. Seifer turned and opened fire, cutting down three more Anacondaurs.

Squall had managed to kill two more monsters by using the remaining explosive charges in Revolver. He had caught the last one in the mouth with his blade then squeezed off the last chambered round. The blast had blown off the head from the jaw up. Zell and Seifer managed to keep them back with their rifles, Squall searched around for another weapon. He saw no other bodies close enough for him to make a run to. Then he spotted something. The soldier Zell had taken the rifle from didn't have another rifle but he did have a single grenade clipped onto his belt. Squall ran over and grabbed the grenade and pulled the pin, lined up his throw and launched it just as both Zell and Seifer's rifles ran dry.

"Fire in the hole!"

Seifer and Zell hit the dirt and covered their head with their arms. Squall tossed the grenade down towards the center of group of Anacondaurs. Not knowing what it truly was, the monsters circled around it to examine the unknown object. They began to move in closer to it when it went off, sending jagged shrapnel in all directions. Seven snakes where instantly shredded and blown apart. The lucky remaining few were only grazed by jagged hot metal. They shrieked and retreated back into the bushes. Seifer and Zell got back up and took one last look down the steps at the carcasses of fallen Anacondaurs.

"Good throw," Seifer commented.

Zell sighed. "I'm ready to go now."

"Let's keep moving."

Squall ran over to another dead Galbadian soldier and relieved the body of its G36 and grabbed several spare mags. He also took this time to reload Revolver. Zell and Seifer did the same and replenished their ammo.

Seifer chuckled slightly. "Hey, technically they only said we couldn't bring Garden issued firearms into battle. Never said anything about taking weapons already here."

Zell and Squall looked at Seifer and then at each other and silently shrugged in agreement.

That done, the three of them turned and started to run back up the steps again.

* * *

Back inside the city at the fountain square, Quistis, Xu and three other SeeD SF operators stood along with three cadet fire teams and a several Dollet Army Silver Knights and a platoon of Dollet army regulars. They had managed to secure the Parliament House but had taken heavy casualties from G-army regulars that had been spread out in all the surrounding buildings.

Xu turned to the ranking Silver Knight, a lieutenant in this case, and asked for a status report.

"The Parliament building was just cleared ma'am. I'm in radio contact with the closest armored division. They are currently engaged with Badian tanks just outside the city on the Hasberry Plains, cutting off the Badian armor from entering the city."

Xu nodded. "Thank you. Keep us updated."

As he turned and walked away, Quistis came up behind Xu and stood next her, waiting to make sure no one else was close enough to hear their conversation. What was about to be discussed could not, under any circumstances, be heard by any Dollet personnel.

"Any luck finding Fire Team Four?"

"Not yet Quistis. They were supposed to be here, holding this fucking position."

Quistis could tell that Xu was beyond furious. Truthfully, so was she. And rightfully so. The plan had been relatively simple; use the SeeD cadets as a spear point to drive a wedge straight through the city, cutting the Badian forces in half. Then those halves would be flanked and destroyed by a combination of Dollet infantry, SF, artillery and armor in cooperation with SeeD forces. And that meant every fire team holding its position until relieved. And then Xu and Quistis had received word that Fire Team Four was not at their position. And as a result their left flank had semi-collapsed when G-army regulars snuck through this very location and flanked several SeeD cadet teams in an attempt to retake the left flank. And this had resulted in the loss of several cadets and triple the number of Dollet forces. Luckily, Quistis and Xu themselves, along with two other SeeD SF operators had been close by and rushed in to aid the collapsing flank. And in doing so had basically saved the whole operation from failure.

Xu was seething. "That motherfucker got others killed Quistis. So help me Hyne he is fucking finished at Garden if I don't murder him myself," she snapped. She looked around at the trail of carnage that started at the center square and lead back towards the left flank. Destroyed military and civilian vehicles, obliterated buildings and burning homes, and streets painted with rubble lay all around them. And then their were the dead bodies of Badian infantry, Dollet infantry, Dollet civilians and the few cadet casualties on top of that, creating a river of death and destruction marking the hard fought path they were forced to traverse in order to retake the square and Parliament House.

A sharp pang of guilt hit Quistis right in the heart. Seifer was her student and had been so for the last three years. And in that time she'd never been able to control him, reach him, or get through to him. Quistis blamed herself; she'd gone way too easy on him and had gotten Seifer out of trouble way too many times. And gave him way too many chances. And he'd walked all over her for it and became more and more reckless and arrogant as a result. And now they had dead cadets on their hands and families that would need to be notified.

_And he's dragged Squall and Zell into it..._

"Report," Xu commanded.

Quistis looked back up and saw one of the remaining fire teams salute Xu in unison. Then the team leader, a petite female with short brown hair, stepped forward to give her update.

"Ma'am, we still haven't located the missing fire team. However, some of the Dollet Silver Knights claimed to have seen three SeeD cadets from a distance some time ago. He stated they were heading in the direction of the mountains."

Xu scowled as her eyes narrowed. "What!? What the hell is he thinking? Thats way out of the immediate combat area."

"I'll go and get them. They're my students." Quistis declared.

"No. We've just about accomplished the terms of our contract with Dollet. They've retaken most of the city. The exam portion of this operation is just about complete. We will be pulling out soon and I'm not sending a lieutenant after them."

Xu turned to the cadet fire team and addressed the team leader. "You will go to the mountain and try to find them. Commandeer a local vehicle and take it to the bridge. Stay in radio contact. If located, give them the order to evacuate back to the beach. If you don't find them, retreat back to the beach for extraction. At that point we list them as MIA."

"Yes ma'am." She turned and ran down the street towards a row of parked cars and SUVs.

Xu looked at Quistis one last time then, with out saying another word, turned and walked back towards the remaining SeeD forces.

* * *

The tower was starting to come into view so they knew they were getting close. When they hit the last step they came upon a small clearing. The path became a descending, winding "C" shape that arced around a small hill. The path ended right at the front doors of the communications tower. They started to run the path but hit the dirt when they spotted two Galbadian soldiers guarding the doors. Seifer and Squall cautiously crawled up to the edge of the hill and peeked down at the two sentries. Zell stayed back and took a knee to stay out of sight.

The doors to the tower opened and another soldier ran out to the other two. Seifer and Squall leaned in closer to listen in on their conversation.

"We have it up and running," the one stated.

"No problems with the boosters or triangulating the signal?" the first sentry asked.

"No, it seems to all be in order. The cable disconnection has been confirmed, we are starting the exchange process."

"Roger that."

All three soldiers turned and walked back into the tower. The large steel doors closed right behind them.

Seifer gave Squall a quizzical look. "What the hell are they talking about?"

"I don't know. What did they mean by repairs?"

"Don't know that either."

They picked themselves up off the ground and huddled up for a second to discuss what to do next.

"So this is your first real battle Squall, how you holding up. Are you scarred?"

Squall thought for a second then answered in earnest. "I don't know."

He had been prepping himself for it but nothing can ever really prepare you for your first combat situation. No amount of training can make you 100% ready for the first time you have to kill. No one was ever truly ready for it. His adrenaline had certainly helped out; and the first soldier he killed happened so fast he'd hadn't gotten the chance to let it sink it yet. He'd focused on completing the mission and defending himself and his comrades. And because of that the possibility of being injured or killed had simply not crossed his mind. Not that he was ignorant to that very possibility.

"Honestly, I guess I'm trying not to think about. But I'm not afraid of any man or monster. They're all just mortal beings that can be defeated and killed."

"I feel truly alive in combat and I fear nothing. In battle you will either kill your enemy or he will kill you. Its really that simple." Seifer felt a sort of belonging in battle and truly believed he was put here for it. "The way I look at it, as long as you make it out of a battle alive, your one step closer to fulfilling your dream."

Squall and Zell took a step back in disbelief. They never though of Seifer as the type of person to have hopes and dreams. Squall always thought that Seifer just had this "screw it, act now and think later" attitude. Zell always just kind of thought Seifer was going to drift through life as a lump of shit.

"What!? Your dream?" Squall asked, still surprised by the previous statement.

Seifer turned to Squall and looked him in the eyes and for once, Squall saw no vanity or arrogance on Seifer's face. In that single moment he was being genuine and honest.

"You have one too, don't you?"

"I'm gonna pass on that subject." Squall hadn't let himself think about hope or dreams of his own in a long time. He wanted to be an elite SeeD SF operator and assure victory for Garden. But past that, Squall truly didn't know.

"Yo! Let me in on it too," Zell requested.

"Mind your own business!"

"Fuck off Seifer. As if you have any goals past attaining power, glory and pussy."

Zell sure as hell wasn't afraid of Seifer Almasy. He stepped up to Seifer and took a few pretend swings at him, coming inches from Seifer's face.

Seifer raised one eye brow at the fighter, doing his best not to laugh. He took a few steps back then turned and started to walk down the path. "I'm going in Squall. You can follow me in or stay here and swat flies with chicken wuss."

Zell scoffed. "What a dick."

"There you are!"

Zell and Squall turned to see a female cadet standing on top of a small hill behind them. She started to trot down but lost her footing and tumbled down the hill landing in a heap at their feet. Squall shook his head in disbelief while Zell leaned down to offer her a hand. She accepted the help then faced the two of them. Squall recognized her immediately as the girl he gave the tour to. She was armed with a single large nunchuck and was panting while trying to catch her breath.

"Are you guys Fire Team Four of Squad B?"

Squall nodded his head. "We are."

"Hey, you're the guy that helped me out yesterday!? Thanks a lot, I don't get lost anymore!" She fixed her hair real quick before going on. "I'm a messenger from Squad One, Fire Team One of class three. My name is Selphie Tilmitt."

"I'm Squall Leonhart and this is Zell Dincht."

"I'm looking for the captain of your team, Seifer Almasy. Where is he?"

Just then Seifer came into view down by the doors of the tower. He looked back up to Squall and waved his hand to get Squall's attention. "One of these days, I'm gonna tell ya about my romantic dream!" With out another word, Seifer turned and ran into the base.

Selphie turned and gave Squall a confused glance. Squall threw his hands up and shook them signaling her not to ask.

"That's Seifer."

Selphie nodded then ran down the hill after him.

"Wait up captain, I have a message for you!"

She hit the bottom of the hill and looked back up to the others. "Well come on already! What are you waiting for?"

Zell and Squall gave each other a defeated look then jumped off the hill, trying not to kill themselves as the trotted down. They hit the bottom of the hill with a thump but managed to stay on their feet. Squall looked way up to where the tower ended. It had to rise at least 250 feet into the air.

Selphie looked all the up to the top. "Sure is big."

Before Squall could say anything else, screams could be heard from inside. All three cadets took defensive stances as the door flew open and out came two disarmed Galbadian soldiers. They ran right by the three of them and scrambled up the path. Another second later Seifer came out after them swinging Hyperion around in their direction. He had the G36 rifle slung across his back.

"Run cowards, run!" He looked at Zell and Squall then smiled. "See, I don't kill everyone I fight." He turned and ran back into the tower, disappearing into the darkness that engulfed the first floor.

Selphie took off after him. "Darn it! I keep losing him, let's go."

Selphie was the first one in the doors followed by Zell and then Squall. The first floor seemed to be a large empty chamber, void of any real objects except for a single elevator for maintenance. It looked like there might have been large amounts of equipment and electronics kept there at one point. The elevator shaft was vacant so Squall guessed Seifer had already taken the lift up to the top.

"He took the elevator up so there isn't anything we can do until it comes back down." Squall tried to look around a little bit more but the large room only had two dimly lit lights for illumination.

Zell and Selphie took seats on the floor while Squall kept stood by the door watching for any approaching Galbadian forces. He had to assume that the two soldiers who ran out of here were going to get some more of their buddies and come back here.

The sound of the elevator returning to the ground floor got the attention of all three cadets. Squall gave the outside one more look. There didn't seem to be anyone outside at all so he turned back to Zell and Selphie. "We are going up."

Selphie nodded and got on to the platform followed by Zell. Squall took one last look around then hopped on. There were numbered buttons going up to floor ten. Figuring that they'd start their search for their idiot team leader at the top, Squall pressed the button for ten. The elevator jumped to life and began to travel up. It took a good minute for them to get all the way to the top. When it finally stopped Squall saw two Galbadian soldiers standing next to what appeared to be a large satellite dish. He didn't see Seifer anywhere so he signaled for Selphie and Zell to take cover behind a large circuit breaker box. Squall was right behind them and the three tried to listen in on what they were saying. This top platform was huge and had three smaller satellite dishes situated around a large opening that traveled back down into the tower.

Zell pointed out the soldier that was an officer. He wore red BDUs instead of blue ones and was covered by much thicker bionic armor that covered his arms and the front and back of his upper chest.

"Lt. Biggs sir," the smaller Galbadian said.

Biggs had his back turned to the other soldier and appeared to be trying to reconnect the proper circuits. It all seemed to be one big mass of jumbled wires and metal piping. "What is it Private Wedge?"

"Sir we have incoming reports of SeeD in the area and a report of a large monster shaped shadow seen around the tower."

Biggs turned around and let out a frustrated sigh. "Wedge, I don't have time for this ok. Command wants this tower up and running. The orders come directly from the President himself!"

"Yes sir! I'll go back to my patrol."

Biggs turned back towards the mess he had before him. "Ok let's see, connect this final circuit onto this conduit here then remove the safety clamps…alright! That should do it." Biggs stepped back and flipped a small switch on the side of the box. Immediately everything started to jump to life. A line of small green bulbs lit up sequentially followed by the sounds of engines kicking to life from with in the tower.

Squall felt a small tremble from behind him and turned around. It felt as if some large mass was flying up to the surface. Squall got his answer a second later when a long metallic cylindrical object flew out of the large opening in the center of the platform. It rose up fifty more feet before coming to a sudden stop. For a moment, nothing else happened. Then the hums of more engine and motors within the object could be heard firing as they came to life. A colossal sized satellite dish sprung forth and angled itself off to the right. A line of long antenna branching off from each other shot out of the middle of the dish. The antenna began to glow white and a large electrical charge catapulted some sort of signal up into the heavens above them.

Squall and the others jumped out from behind their cover. They had to get this guy on the ground and question him about what the Galbadians wanted with this communication tower.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

Lt. Biggs turned around and jumped back. "Where did you people come from? What happened to my troops below?"

"I'd be more worried about your self right now." Zell stated. Both cadets pointed their rifles at the Badian soldiers.

Biggs was about to say something else when he heard the sound of boots running across the metal grating. He turned to see Wedge come running up behind him. He had his rifle slung over his shoulder.

"Sir I just finished my patrol. No enemies-" Wedge cut himself off when he saw the three SeeDs in front of Biggs. Squall noticed that his rifle had an over and under grenade launcher attached to it.

"Wedge, why didn't you tell me we had SeeDs in the area? Hyne damn it, you are useless sometimes! No pay for you this month!"

Wedge slapped his head in frustration. "Son of a bitch! Should have just stayed home!"

Just then the elevator came back up the shaft carrying Seifer on it. He ran off the lift and took a position next to Squall.

"Where the hell were you? We thought you went up here?"

"I was on the sixth floor. It's some kind of giant engine room or something. Killed off a shit load of them. They've got no back up now."

Wedge and Biggs took the hesitation as an opportunity to grab some cover. They simultaneously made a dash for one of the smaller dishes and rolled behind it. Wedge slung his rifle around and opened fire wildly while Biggs pulled his pistol from his holster and joined in with the shooting. All four SeeDs scattered; taking cover behind different circuit boxes. Selphie leaned out slightly and launched several ice spells towards their opponents. Ice spears shot out from her hand and struck the ground right at Wedge's feet, missing him be inches. Wedge jumped back behind cover and Squall saw him reach into his satchel bag on his belt. He brought a forty millimeter high explosive grenade out and loaded it into the launcher on his rifle.

_Oh shit._

He didn't have any time to react. Wedge jumped out from behind cover, Biggs still shooting from the other side of the dish, and pointed his weapon at Selphie's position. She was behind cover and didn't even know he was aiming for her. Just as he was about to pull the trigger both he and Biggs where lifted up off the ground by a huge gust of wind. It tossed them up into the air then smashed them into the side of the central dish. They hit it with enough force to produce a loud metallic thud before falling to the ground unconscious. Wedge's rifle flew out of his hands and slid to the edge of the platform.

The four of them just stood there for a minute completely shell-shocked.

Selphie lowered her nunchuck and pointed towards them. "Um, what just happened?"

Another second later they got their answer. A large winged beast levitated itself up into view. It had large red bat wings, purple skin, large horns on its head and huge muscular arms holding with razor sharp claws. Its most sticking feature was the insect-like thorax attached the bottom of its abdomen where its legs should have been. Jutting forth from that was a long pointed hypodermic stinger that was easily longer then Selphie was tall.

Zell's jaw dropped. "What. Is. That?"

Selphie dropped back down into her stance. "It's an Elnoyle!"

Seifer stepped forward and pointed Hyperion at the monster. "What ever it is, it's going down. Charge!"

The beast let out a bloodthirsty roar and swooped in. Seifer took a running leap into the air with Hyperion raised but never got the chance to strike. The beast swung his left arm and flung Seifer across the platform like a rag doll. Selphie stepped up and launched several fire spells, pelting it with fireballs. The thing was pushed back a few feet but turned and sucked in a large amount of oxygen. It pointed its mouth towards Selphie, unhinged its jaw and shot a focused surge of wind in her direction. The surge picked Selphie up and tossed her right over the side of the platform. She managed to get one hand on some of the underlying piping and hung on for dear life. Zell rushed over to help her while Squall charged in with his gunblade. The Elnoyle had its attention on Zell and was getting ready to spew another gust of wind when Squall's gunblade made contact with its left flank. He pulled the trigger as he brought the blade down causing the bolt of energy to tear a long jagged laceration down the left side of its chest. The explosive round from the Revolver sent the beast flying back and crashing down to the platform.

Seifer was back on his feet by this time and joined Squall as they both rushed in on the beast. It was trying to get itself up when Seifer and Squall landed on its chest and began hacking away at it while pulling the triggers of their gunblades. The beast screamed in pain as long jagged gashes were blown into its chest and arms. It finally lined the two cadets up and threw slashes with both its claws. The attacks hit their marks, cutting both cadets open while they were flung back ten feet. The landing caused both to lose the rifles they'd taken.

The beast got itself up and back into the air then lunged at the two of them with its thorax out front; stinger pointed out and leaking venom. Just feet away from its targets the beast heard the screams of Selphie and Zell who ran and jumped over the bodies of their downed comrades. Selphie swung her nunchuck around and connected with the beasts head while Zell snapped his foot out and jammed it into its chests. The beast flew backwards again but managed to keep itself in the air. Bloody and torn, the beast shrieked out a furious roar before raising its arm and flinging a large fireball at the group. The four cadets jumped in different directions as the fireball hit the platform and exploded, tearing away some of metal grating.

Squall rolled back to his feet and tried to shake the dizziness off him. When he looked back up he laid eyes on the rifle that one Badian had.

_The grenade launcher._

He made a dash for the rifle, sprinting by the right side of the beast. It took a swing at him but he ducked under it and threw himself the last couple of feet. Squall reached over the edge and scooped the weapon up. He rolled over on to his back and saw the beast coming down at him, stinger jutting out. He steadied his aim and pulled the trigger.

The grenade whizzed through the air and connected with the monster's chest before going off. The explosion blew off the beast's left arm and most of its upper left chest. Pieces of bone, muscle and sinew flew in all directions. All four cadets got a decent coating of blood spray on them. The monster screamed in agony and crumpled down to the platform before tumbling backwards over the edge. Squall peeked over and saw the thing plummet all the way down to the surface of the water, hitting with a loud crash. It sank like a ton of bricks leaving only a fading white circle of foam. Squall rolled over to his stomach and slowly pushed himself back up. The other three were on their feet and walked over to look down at the water.

"Good shot," Zell stated.

Seifer snorted. "And I had it right were I wanted it too. I could have finished it myself."

Squall rolled his eyes. "Seifer shut the fuck up already."

"Oh pu-lease, that thing was smacking all of us around," Zell said.

Selphie stepped forward to address Seifer. "Captain Almasy, I have new orders from Captain Zang. SeeD SF has been given the order to withdraw. Galbadian forces are on the retreat. Dollet forces are going to stay and finish fighting."

Squall stepped up. "The order to leave takes priority. I'm not missing our ride home."

"I'm with you on that," Zell added.

Seifer sheathed his weapon. "Wait, how much time do we have?"

Selphie check her watch. "We have thirty minutes at this point."

Zell looked down at his watch. "Ah shit! Selphie, why didn't you mention this sooner?!"

Selphie swing around to Zell. "The message was for Seifer and we were kinda busy. Didn't get a chance."

"Time to get out of here people. I suggest you run your asses off." Seifer, being the closest to the elevator, turned and ran to the lift platform and hit the switch. It immediately took off down the shaft.

The other three cadets ran over to shaft and looked down it completely dumbfounded.

"I don't believe it! He just left us," Selphie yelled.

"Who the hell does he think he is?" Zell balled his hand up into a fist.

"That's something you can ask him when we get out of here." Squall walked over to the elevator shaft and waited for it to return.

It seemed like it took forever for the elevator to get back up to the top but Squall had checked his watch and saw that only five minutes had gone by. They rushed onto the lift and hit the button and the lift immediately began descending again. Squall knew they would be cutting it close. He estimated it would take about ten to twelve minutes to get to the other side of the bridge where they could take a vehicle and drive the rest of the way.

The second the elevator platform hit the ground all three bolted. They made their way outside and took the path towards the stone staircase. What they weren't aware of was that Biggs had snapped back to reality right after they exited the tower. Still groggy and numb from the pain, he reached over to his side and pulled a small remote off his belt and hit a few buttons.

"This will teach those damn punks a lesson!" He whispered in pain before blacking out again.

Somewhere down below a robotic terror sprung to life and identified three moving targets market for death before taking off after them.

As they made their way up the path Selphie stopped running suddenly. The other turned around to see what she was doing.

"Do you guys hear something? Like something metallic moving around."

Zell listened for a moment then shook his head. "I don't hear anything. Come one, we have to keep moving."

They were about to start running when Squall spotted something half way up the tower clinging on to the side. "Look!"

Selphie and Zell turned to see what it was. It looked like a large robotic spider of some sort. It gazed at them for another second then took one giant leap off the tower and landed a mere thirty feet from where they were standing. It was black and sliver and had four legs that propped up a center body mass and two long razor sharp claws in the front. Squall noticed the Galbadian insignia and instantly knew this thing wasn't here to help. It had the phrase _X-ATM092 GOLEM_ tattooed on each one of its legs.

"Run!" Squall ordered.

All three cadets ran for their lives. They lost site of it for a second then heard it leap into the air again. A large shadow passed over them as the Golem landed in front of them blocking their path.

Squall at the others. "Thunder spells!"

Selphie and Zell got the message and together they sprayed out three lines of lighting that engulfed the machine. It shook for a few seconds then seemed to just go limp.

Zell took a few steps forward. "That was simple."

Something didn't feel right to Squall. It just seemed way to simple too defeat this weapon. "Let's move out."

They took off around the Galbadian killing machine and continued down the path. Seconds later they were at the steps running down them as fast as they could, jumping two and three steps at a time. When they hit the last step Squall turned and saw the machine barreling down towards them. They took off even faster across the bridge. When they got to the other side Selphie shouted for them to follow her over to the car she had taken earlier. They leapt in and Selphie immediately fired the car up then slammed down on the gas. The car jumped and lurched forward, peeling off.

Selphie took a double take as she drove. "What the hell? How did it get itself back up?"

"It must have fixed itself somehow." Zell answered.

"How did it do that?"

"Probably some sort of advanced nano-technology. The Badians are into all kinds of shit."

Squall turned to Zell and saw he still had his rifle on him.

"Zell, cover our retreat!"

Selphie whipped the car down the streets and didn't bother to slow down. Squall was hoping that they could lose it in the city and make a clean get away. Selphie veered away from the square, careful not to come to close to the Parliament House and the Dollet infantry. Just as they began to think that they had lost the machine, a rumbling started again as the X-ATM092 came into view. It flew down the street at full pace, its pistons and hydraulics running at their limit. Selphie screamed and slammed down even harder on the gas. Zell opened up with the rifle, lining up shots on the the machine. But the rifle rounds were having no effect and Zell went through both remaining mags before tossing the rifle.

Selphie suddenly slammed the breaks and made a sharp right turn down a back alley road before slamming back down on the gas. The Golem couldn't stop in time and smashed into a shop as it tried to make the same turn, causing the whole building to come down on it.

"Yes! We lost it!" Zell exclaimed gleefully. "Selphie, that is some awesome driving!"

Selphie waved her left hand. "Thanks!" she chirped in a proud tone.

"Looks like we lost it for good." Squall added.

_Probably still buried._

They were coming up on the beach as they turned down the last road and had just passed under a stone overpass when all three heard the familiar sounds of its movement. Before they could say anything else, a candy store ahead of them on their right exploded as the machine plowed its way through it back onto road. Selphie slammed her breaks again and attempted another drift maneuver around the machine but it was ready this time and struck the car as they passed by. Selphie lost control and the car flipped several times, coming to a stop right by an archway that lead to the steps leading down to the beach.

Squall was the first one out of the car, Zell second, helping Selphie through the passenger side door. The machine wasted no time and barreled down towards them. Squall screamed for them to run as he turned and focused on a large thunder spell. When the machine got to the remains of the getaway car, it slapped it aside. This gave Squall a perfect shot and he let loose with the most powerful lightning bolt he could muster. The bolt connected with its target, causing the Golem to lose its balance and trip to the left, crashing into a building. Seeing this as his chance, Squall turned and ran for his life. He made it to steps leading to the beach and hit the sand with a roll.

Behind him, the Golem had gotten up once again and picked up its pace in anticipation for a stone arc way in its path. The killing machine smashed through it and hit the sand with a thud. It had seemed to shut down for a second and didn't move but then its two mechanical red eyes came back to life and it picked itself up.

Squall could see the Barracuda and Selphie and Zell. They were shouting for him to run as fast as he could. He saw Zell's eyes widen and the color leave Selphie's face as a look of sheer horror came over her. Squall turned back just in time to see the Golem reach out with one of its claws and manage to nick Squall across the lower back. The blade cut clean through his jacket and shirt and left a decent slash down his back. The sting made him lose his balance and he made a last-ditch effort to live by hurling himself as far as he could. His leap landed him in the water just short of the doors of the Barracuda and he started to craw forward. Zell went to out to help him in but Squall knew it would be too late. Just feet behind him the Golem raised both its claws ready to cut Squall clean in half.

The sound of gun fire from the twin fifties erupted through the air. On top of the Barracuda Quistis manned the heavy machine gun and bore into the robot with everything she had. The rounds cut through the metallic monster and pushed it back, giving Zell enough time to drag Squall into the ship. Quistis continued to lay waste to the machine, pushing it back and knocking it over. It erupted into flames then exploded with a thunderous _BOOM, _dousing the surround beach with metal shrapnel.

Zell helped Squall to his feet and cast a cure spell on him to help with the bleeding wounds. Squall looked inside and saw Seifer sitting with his legs propped up. Squall shook his head before turning back to Zell and Selphie. Together, the three of them took one last look out at Chartersville as the Barracuda took off into the ocean. They had done all they could and next up would be the moment of truth.

* * *

NOTES: LOL I know, I know...a very long chapter. Massive actually. And honestly, probably a bit too long. I'm fairly certain it will be the single longest chapter in the story. BUT, it needed to be done. I was thinking of dividing it up into at least two chapters but I decided against this. I thought it needed to be one continuous installment completely covering the SeeD exam since its such a vital plot event for every character involved. But is anyone really complaining about a longer chapter? It just means theres more story to read and enjoy.

A few things I wanted to point out. First, I wanted to give the global interference a name and make it some almost supernatural occurrence that is studied and debated everywhere on Terra (the name I gave the planet). At least, everywhere outside of Esthar of course. So I created the GRIPH. Also, I still wanted to have some sort of radio communication still in use and I think the concept of the SEMP radios are a practical evolution and partial solution to the problem. It would make sense if people had been studying its causes and ways to get around the GRIPH. I also think theres no physical way it could effect the whole planet at once and I'll get into that later on.

Definitely wanted to add more killing and carnage and gore to the chapter since this is a full scale battle. The beach landings reminded me of the D-day landings in France during WWII. Thats why I had the cadets hit the ground running instead of turning back around to talk to Quistis like they did in the game. You wouldn't do that on a real battlefield because you'd get mowed the fuck down by machine gun fire. And I made the getaway scene a car chase through the city. I thought it would be more exciting and a more realistic way for the retreating cadets to cover the distance of the whole city and still make it to the beach in time while being chased by the Galbadian killing machine.

LOL...btw did anyone pick up the little bit of local Philadelphia slang I threw in the last chapter. ;-)

Hope you enjoyed it!


	6. Aftermath

**Chapter 6**

**Aftermath**

Wednesday, May 4th, 2217NE

12:23 pm

The trip home brought no peace or sense of accomplishment to Squall or anyone else. The inside of their Barracuda was almost as chaotic as Chartersville had been. As he started to come down off the combat high and adrenaline rush, Squall took in his current surroundings. The inside of the amphibious APC had been turned into a make shift triage center. On board were several cadet medics, one actual SeeD medic, along with Quistis and the single remaining SF cadet from Fire Team Three, Kit Harzon. He had severe puncture wounds from from shrapnel and a few burns on this chest. The SeeD medic and one of the cadet medics were furiously working on him to save his life.

Also onboard were two more cadets that Squall didn't recognize; also bandaged up and laying back into their seats apparently asleep. The floor of the APC was littered in bandages, gauze, clotting pads, wrappers, blood and clothing cut away from bodies.

Meanwhile the other two medics and Quistis were seeing to Zell and Selphie's wounds. Squall looked at Zell, Selphie and then finally down at himself. His uniform was ruined; torn up and covered in dirt, oil, grime, gore and blood. Zell and Selphie looked about the same. Zell had several deep lacerations on his arms and one across his left shoulder that went down his back. And a deep cut on his right calf.

Selphie had a gash on her scalp, bruised knees and elbows, several scrapes on her face and two wounds from bullet grazes on her back and inner right thigh along with a laceration across her abdomen and a smaller one across her chest.

It was at this point that Squall felt the pain from all his wounds start to set in. His left hand instinctively went down to his left quadricep; he felt a deep bloody wound and realized he'd been shot.

_Probably happened up on the radio tower._

Quistis must have noticed the gun shot wound the same time as Squall because she ran over to him and then called for another one of the cadet medics. They peeled off his uniform jacket and cut away his shirt and a large piece of his left pant leg. The medic quickly deduced that the bullet wound wasn't bad; it was superficial mostly and was probably from a ricochet. The bullet had exited clean through his leg and hadn't hit the bone or artery. He treated the wound then moved on to Squall's other injuries. He had two long slash wounds down the front of his chest and another diagonally down his back. He had contusions on his left hand and left arm and also around his right eye. Along with this was several smaller scrapes on his chest and arms. His nose was bleeding and so was his lip.

Quistis took a squeeze bottle of saline solution and hosed down the wounds and cleaned them out. Then she casted a cure spell on Squall. At the same time the medic cadet gave squall an injection made up of healing potion as well as an antibiotic and bandaged him up.

Quistis forced a smile. "You're a fucking mess."

"Whatever," Squall replied weakly.

Quistis was almost certain that Squall had said that sarcastically in an attempt to be funny. His response caused her to chuckle slightly.

The medical cadet wasted no time or words and immediately went back to helping to work on Kit Harzon.

Squall, now shirtless and bandaged up and sitting back into his seat, looked over at Zell and Selphie. Selphie had to have her jacket, shirt, yellow sports bra and her skirt all cut away, leaving her heavily bandaged up in just her matching bottoms. She was currently laying down with a white sheet draped over her body to cover her up and had an IV in her right arm. She was resting quietly and Squall was fairly sure she was out cold or asleep from something the medic had gave her.

_No time or place for modesty in this situation._

Treating wounds and injuries often required cutting away clothing to properly address them and they were all soldiers together first and foremost. Privacy was sometimes a luxury they wouldn't have access to.

However, Squall quickly reached over and tucked the white sheet in around her, double checking to make sure it was secure so that she remained covered up while out cold. While there was no time for modesty, he could at least ensure that her dignity was kept in tact with a simply gesture. After all, she was a warrior and fellow comrade in arms.

Zell's jacket had also been tossed to the ground. His right pant leg was cut away by the calf and his shirt had been removed as well, replaced with clotting agents, gauze and tape wrapped around the wound on his back. He currently sat across from Selphie but he was looking over at Seifer. His eyes narrowed in to a hateful glare.

Not even Seifer had made it out of Dollet with out injuries. His white jacket was torn up and covered in blood splatter and dirt. It was draped over the side of his seat. He'd been grazed by a bullet that had ripped open his upper left shoulder. And he had a large slash across his back and a smaller puncture wound on his right thigh. And he had several cuts across the side of his head.

_Serves him right._

It was at this moment that Seifer finally looked over at Zell and scoffed.

"So what took you three so long?" Seifer asked.

Zell jumped out of his seat and made a charge at Seifer. Seifer started to get up but Zell closed the distance too fast and threw a nasty right elbow strike, making contact with Seifer's left cheek. The attack knocked Seifer back.

"You son of a bitch! You left us up there to fend for ourselves. We almost got killed by that fucking thing that chased us through the streets!"

Seifer shot back around around. "Chicken shit! I have killed motherfuckers for less!"

Quistis whipped around and had gotten between the two of them, using her increased strength from her junction treatment to keep them from killing each other. Squall stepped up behind Zell, convincing him that it wasn't worth it. In the middle of all the arguing, a sudden alarm cut them all off. They all turned to where the medics were furiously working on Kit Harzon; the monitors he was hooked up to went off, showing that he just flat lined. Quistis gave them both another pissed off look.

"Cut this shit out. You're aren't students anymore."

She turned and ran back over to help the medics work on Kit, trying to save his life. Zell, Seifer and Squall all looked at each other and backed off, quietly sitting down. None of them could bring themselves to look over at the fallen cadet as the SeeD medic gave him a shot of adrenaline and shocked his heart with the defibrillators. None of the cadets said anything else for the rest of the trip.

Thirty minutes later, the Barracuda pulled into Enell Bay and started to reduce its speed. It pulled back into peer five at Fort Stalton and pulled up to the dock sideways before coming to a halt. Standing on the dock was Xu with several more SeeD medic teams, waiting to get the wounded out of the ships and over to the hospital SeeD had on site, separate from Balamb's own military hospital it had on base. Xu had taken another Barracuda back to Balamb. One which had left prior to this one.

The hatch of the of the ship opened up, Quistis emerging first. She walked up to Xu and saluted then began giving her a status report as the medical teams moved on to the ship.

Selphie, who was still out cold at this point, was brought out first on a stretcher and loaded onto an ambulance. Then the other two cadets. Next came Zell and Squall, each of whom walked out on their on two feet with medics close behind them. They both managed to get up into the same ambulance as Selphie on their own.

Zell looked down at Selphie and then at the SeeD that was monitoring her.

"Is she going to be OK?"

"Yea, she's gonna be fine. All three of you will be. None of you have any broken bones; plenty of lacerations, contusions and swelling. But with magic and the medicine we have those types of wounds will be healed up in a few hours. However, cadets with more serious injuries..."  
He trailed off as they watched Kit Harzon being brought off the ship on a stretcher, still clinging to life by a thread. They'd needed to stabilize him first before moving him. The medics rushed him over to his own ambulance then immediately sped off towards the SeeD hospital.

Lastly, Seifer exited the ship walking on his own; his coat folded and draped over his shoulder. When Xu spotted him, she marched right over to Seifer and got right in his face.

"I'll deal with you later at Garden," she hissed. She pointed way down towards the opposite end of the dock where the bodies of the dead cadets were being unloaded from one of the Barracudas. Both Balamb military personnel as well as SeeD were present to help move them while the bodies and/or remains were saluted. Amongst the mass of soldiers were Headmaster Cid and General Crace.

Seifer looked past Xu and locked eyes on the the dead cadets and for a moment, Squall could have sworn he'd seen regret, anguish and shame wash over Seifer's face.

With out saying anything, Seifer walked around Xu and off towards a red colored sports sedan. As he approached, Fujin and Raijin exited the vehicle and ran up to him, eager to check on the leader of their posse.

"Hurt?" Fujin asked.

"Nah, I'm fine Fu."

"So Seifer, how did it go? I'm sure it was easy for ya, ya know." Raijin said.

Seifer hesitated for a moment before closing his eyes and forcing an arrogant smile to form. "Man, I tell you what. Being a leader ain't easy. All they did was get in my way." Seifer spoke loud enough so that the others could hear him.

Raijin walked over and patted Seifer on the back. "Come on dude, we'll give ya a ride home."

The trio made their way back to the car. Fujin took Seifer's coat, allowing him to get into the front passenger's seat. Raijin jumped in the driver's seat while Fujin got into the back. Then the car's engine fired up and they took off.

"He is such a jerk off," Zell hissed through gritted teeth. He turned and saw that Quistis had walked over to their ambulance as it was getting ready to take off.

Quistis shook her head quietly in disappointment.

"Sorry about you guys getting stuck with him as your team leader. She noticed the defeated look they all had on their faces. "Hey don't worry about what happened back there, you all did fine and I'm sure the three of you will make it. And don't worry about Seifer; he'll get what's coming to him. After you guys are released from the hospital you'll be free for the rest of the day. Just make sure you're back at Garden by 10pm. Thats when Cid will make the announcements."

Quistis made eye contact with Squall and gave him a slight nod then turned and walked back towards where Xu was standing with several of the other SeeD SF. Then a second medic closed the back doors to the ambulance before jumping in to the driver's seat and taking off.

About three hours later Squall sat up from his hospital bed as a nurse walked in to his room and check his wounds. Looking over the lacerations, she nodded in satisfaction.

"Your wounds have healed up very nicely. You've got some more scars now to match the one on your face though. You can get dressed and go when you're ready."

Squall nodded and thanked the nurse then reached for the cadet uniform that was hung up on the wall next to him. SeeD had his measurements and had a replacement uniform brought to his room. He quietly got dressed and as he did so, took notice of the new scars on body. Two slash marks traveled down his chest and he noticed a longer, larger and more jagged scar running diagonally across his back that hadn't healed as well the two in the front. He took another moment to study them, and couldn't help but feel a sense of foreshadowing these scars represented towards his future career.

Squall finished getting dressed and walked out into the hallway where Selphie and Zell already waited. When Zell jumped out of his seat and waved to Squall in his usual over hyper manner, Squall knew he was just fine. Selphie stood up a little slower as Squall walked over to the petite soldier.

"You good?"

"Yea I feel a lot better. Was pretty banged up from the injuries and blood loss. But Garden has great doctors and medical tech."

Squall nodded silently. It was true. The combination of advanced medicines, healing potions and magics ensured that most minor to moderate wounds, including blood loss, could be treated and healed up completely with in hours so long as SeeDs made it back to Garden medical facilities. Only more serious wounds to bones, arteries, major organs or head traumas required longer hospital stays and accelerated down times for recovery. All SeeDs were financial investments, and it benefited Garden greatly to dump serious money into medical tech that kept their personnel up and running and healed.

"I am exhausted. How are we going to get back to Garden?" Selphie asked.

"I guess we'll have to walk back. I don't have the money for a cab ride." Squall answered.

An idea hit Zell suddenly. "I got an idea guys, just leave it to me. Its a bit of walking but I know where we can rest and get a home cooked meal."

A little over twenty minutes later the three cadets walked down the 400 block of Kensington Ave. They took the next right onto Frankford Ave and walked three more blocks before making a left turn. Six houses down was a small two-story town house located at 129 Green Street.

"You know who lives here?" Squall asked.

"Yep. I live here." Zell walked right up to the door and entered. Selphie and Squall followed him in. Directly inside was a hallway that led into a family room. Beyond that was a room that looked like a nice cozy den with a fireplace. A kitchen was off to the right and next to that was a set of stairs going up to the second floor. Squall looked around and saw a few pictures of Zell scattered around. There was a delicious smell coming from the kitchen that got Squall's attention.

"Mom, I'm home!"

A short woman with long brown hair that was wrapped up in a bun walked out of the kitchen drying her hands of a towel. She saw Zell and let out a yelp of joy then ran over and gave him a big hug. Selphie beamed as well; she loved and and all happy reunions.

"Zell! Your home sweety. You had your exam today right?"

"Thats right Ma, I just finished up my final exam."

"So then you're a SeeD now right?"

"Well not yet but we get the results tonight. I think we definitely made it though."

Ma Dintch looked past Zell to the other two people standing behind him. Zell took the initiative and proceeded to go through introductions.

"Ma, this is Selphie Tilmitt and Squall Leonhart. They're friends of mine."

Selphie ran over and gave Ma Dintch a hug. "Hi! It's wonderful to meet you! I love your home; it looks very cozy and inviting!" Squall rolled his eyes and let out a slight sigh. Selphie finally let go of her so that she could turn her attention to Squall. She took notice of his stern, cold, professional look.

"It is nice to meet you ma'am." Squall stated formally.

"Ah, the quiet and serious type. It's nice to meet you Squall. So Zell, when do you have to be back?"

"Well they want us back by 10pm. That's when their giving us the results."

"Wonderful. You and your friends can stay for dinner. You have plenty of time. I made stew."

"Sounds good Ma. By the way, did Walt ever come over to fix my truck?"

"Yes honey he did. Your pick-up is parked outback."

Zell turned back to the others. "Well we got our ride home so we might as well stay and get something to eat."

A half an hour later they sat around the kitchen table finishing up their meals. Ma Dintch had entertained their guests with stories of Zell's upbringing; most of them embarrassing in nature. Zell and Selphie told his mom about some parts of their mission, including Almasy's recklessness, Squall's heroism with taking on the Golem by himself to give them time to escape to the boat as well as saving Zell from the enemy solider at the fountain. He left out the parts of all their injuries. Ma Dincht turned and warmly thanked Squall for protecting her son. Squall had humbly stated that he was simply protecting a comrade and that he was sure Zell would have done the same. But Squall had mostly eaten quickly and quietly, even going back for seconds and then thirds. The stew was really good; so much better than the food Garden served in the cafeteria. And he allowed himself to enjoy a good meal in a nice, cozy home sitting around a kitchen table. But something about a home cooked meal felt familiar to him, as if it wasn't the first he'd eaten at a home with a family. But he was certain he'd never had a meal at someone's home before, much less with a family. A few meals out at restaurants, but other than that he'd lived off of Garden's cafeteria meals.

After they had finished eating, Selphie offered to help Zell's mom with cleaning up while Zell said he wanted to show Squall something. Zell walked up the steps to the second floor with Squall in tow. At the top of the steps was a small hallway that led off to two separate rooms. Zell walked into his room and grabbed a picture off the wall. Squall took notice of the room. It was medium-sized, with enough room for his bed, cabinets and a few trinkets here and there.

"This was my grandfather, Marcus Dintch. He was a soldier in the Balamb military and a famous CQC and knife instructor."

Squall gave Zell a surprised look. "Marcus Dintch!? Thee Marcus Dintch. I know about him. Didn't he used to give demonstrations on fighting techniques? I heard he used to have four or five armed soldiers attack him at once and would neutralize all of them."

"Yea that's him. He's the reason I started training in the martial arts. Someday I'm gonna be as good as him."

Squall crossed his arms. "You must like having a family to support you."

"You don't have a family?"

"No. I'm an orphan Zell, I don't have anyone. But I don't need family or friends; I'm strong enough to survive on my own. I don't need anyone else to help me out or make me strong."

Zell shook his head and put the picture down. "Well I was adopted so I can see where you're coming from. But Squall, having family and friends doesn't mean you're weak. Having them makes a strong person even stronger."

"You have your opinion, I have mine. We better get back to Garden."

With out another word, he turned and walked out of the room. Zell stood there for another moment looking at the pictures of himself with his family, wondering what Squall had been through during his life so far to make him that way.

After thanking Ma Dintch for her hospitality, Squall, Selphie and Zell had loaded up into the pick-up truck and started off for Garden. Before they left however, she had pulled Squall aside.

"Zell wants to be a great fighter like his grandfather. That's why he joined Garden. I've heard good and bad things about that mercenary school but Zell seems to really believe he can make a difference in the world through Garden. That's why I believe Garden isn't some evil greedy establishment but is there to help protect mankind. Or else Zell wouldn't have stayed."

"I'm sure he'll live up to his grandfather's level of skill." He turned to leave but she reached out and gently grabbed his arm.

"My point being he's a good man and would make a good friend." She couldn't be sure but Ma Dincht guessed that under that hard outer shell of professionalism and emotionless formality was a guy who just needed someone in his life.

"I don't need or want friends. When push comes to shove, you can only rely on yourself."

"Don't be a fool boy. Humans weren't made to be solitary creatures. One way or another, that's a lesson you're gonna have to learn."

Squall gave her a polite nod then made his way out to the truck. Zell and Selphie waved as they pulled out of the back driveway and took off down the street, Ma Dintch waving back to them. Squall didn't wave but he did nod respectfully again. Ma Dincht hoped he'd get the chance to open up. He just needed the right person to break through that shell he'd built around his heart.

* * *

Back in the Headmaster's office, Xu, Cid, General Crace, SeeD MP General Huxley and SeeD SF Captain Lance sat around a large rectangular meeting table situated in front of Cid's desk. At the far opposite end of the table from where Cid seated himself sat two robed Garden Faculty Assistants. They were there to represent the Garden Master. With the exception of Lucious Crace, everyone in the room had laptops and large notepads on the table in front of them, ready to take notes and look up information and any stats if needed.

"Losses?" one of the robed men asked unemotionally.

Xu gave the Garden Faculty a poisonous stare. She hated the Garden Faculty. They didn't care about anything other than profit margin and making money. The lives of the cadets and SeeDs meant nothing to them or the Master they served.

Cid brought up a document window on his laptop and began reading through the stats. "Ten cadets KIA, one SeeD injured, seventeen more cadets wounded with six injured more seriously. Two of the seriously injured cadets probably won't be able to work again. And one of those two is clinging to life as we speak."

The other Faculty member scoffed. "Thats one of highest casualty counts on a mission in recent years. How do you explain this failure? The loss of those cadets represents a loss of hundreds of thousands of gil over the course of their years of training. Perhaps the Seeds you decided to send over there to supervise the mission were not the most competent." He shot Xu an arrogant look.

Enraged, Xu shot up out of her seat. "Listen here you sniveling little-"

"Captain! That is enough." General Crace ordered.

Xu looked like she wanted to say something else and even started to protest but collected herself and sat back down. Captain Lance leaned over and placed a hand on her shoulder in a supportive fashion, whispering something into her ear. She nodded slowly and it seemed to calm her down.

Crace then turned his attention to the robed men. "Its easy for individuals who aren't SeeDs to criticize the military personnel in charge of a mission that doesn't go as planned from the safety of their desks."

"Regardless, we don't care that we aren't SeeD Special Forces and neither does the Garden Master. Fact of the matter is we have several cadets who's families now require us to pay out their life insurance policies to. And it sounds like we also have at least two cadets who will require us to pay them disability benefits to for the rest of their lives."

The other GFA perked up. "Unless they did something reckless on the mission that got themselves injured or killed. It would give us a legal reason to deny benefits and save prof-,"

Cid slammed his hand down on the table. "We will be paying out the required gil to the families of the fallen cadets and the benefits to the those that end up unable to work. If either of you two or Garden Master NORG has a fucking problem with that then thats just too bad."

The two GFAs looked at each other and seemed to yield on the topic for the time being. Captain Lance and Xu exchanged satisfied grins of approval. General Crace remained steel eyed and stoic, although Xu could tell that what the two GFAs had just suggested disgusted him.

The GFA on the right leaned back into his chair and crossed his arms. "OK, so how exactly did this happen?"

Headmaster Kramer slid a file over to General Crace who opened it and briefly read through the notes before beginning the to read the report out loud. "The losses occurred mostly as a result of a collapse of one of our flanks. One of the cadet fire team leaders took it upon himself to lead his team up into the mountains to search and destroy a G-army platoon. This left our center open and Badian regulars were able to flood through."

"The cadet you're referring to is Seifer Almasy," he replied with out looking up at the General. He was flipping through his own print out of the events that transpired.

"That's correct. Captain Xu is recommending that Almasy be confined to the brig until his hearing and then expelled from Garden. It pains me to say so but I concur with her assessment."

General Huxley then spoke. "We can arrest Almasy later on this evening after Headmaster Cid makes the announcements."

"NORG is not going to be happy about the idea of expelling Seifer. I'm reading here that it turned out that the G-army was after the radio tower from the start. So in hind sight you could make the argument that Seifer leading his team up there was the correct move to make. If Dollet hadn't been so cheap with payment they could have kept us there longer and driven the Badians out completely while securing the radio tower that our team discovered."

"It doesn't matter that he turned out to be correct," Xu replied. "He disobeyed a direct order to hold the square, resulting in the deaths of cadets. He rushed up that mountain for his own personal glory and to bolster his ego. He was just looking for a fight and didn't care about endangering his team mates. It wasn't as if there was some exigent circumstances that compelled him to have to go up there. The fact that he just so happened to discover their true intentions is irrelevant."

The GFA shook his head. "He's one of only two gunbladers in Garden and most would argue the more skilled of the two. And the exotic nature of the gunblade makes them, and consequently Balamb Garden, more marketable."

"Seifer will make Garden a lot of money," the other GFA began. "Surely we've lost enough today from cadet casualties, why don't we just push him through. He's more than qualified skill-wise."

"No," Cid replied in a sad, disappointed tone. It broke his heart to agree with the Crace and Xu. Especially since he knew the true pasts of both Squall and Seifer. But he also knew that it had to be this way. It was supposed to play out like this.

"Seifer has to go."

"NORG will not allow it. At least consider the him for the NOC program."

The NOC, or Non Official Cover, was a program used by Balamb Garden only a few times in the past. It was a SeeD that would go undercover for a mission, posing as a rogue agent that had been disavowed and dishonorably discharged by Garden.

"Out of the question. That would be the worst thing we could do for Seifer...and Garden. Go and tell NORG my decision. I will be meeting with him later. I have to get ready to make the announcements soon. Thats all for now ladies and gentlemen."

* * *

It was about 8:30pm when Zell's blue pick-up truck took the exit off the highway leading to Balamb Garden. He pulled around to the parking garage and showed the SeeD MP at the guard house his ID along with Selphie's and Squall's. He pulled into the first available spot he saw and shut the engine down.

Selphie was the first out of the truck and stretched her legs out. "Finally! We made it back."

Zell let out a slow yawn. "I could definitely go for a hot shower and a bed right now."

Squall signaled for them to start moving. The three of them made their way through the parking garage and into the main hall. They walked through the connecting hallway and when they reached the entrance of the dorms, they saw two other cadets from SF Class 3 were standing near by. One of them turned to Squall and the others. Squall believed his name was Nida.

"Hey guys, did you hear? Galbadia was really after that large communication tower in Chartersville," Nida stated.

"But that doesn't make any sense because radio signals are almost useless." the other one stated.

Zell's jaw dropped. "I don't believe that! We were up there too. What else did you hear Nida?"

"That's about it really."

"I forget, why do the signals not work anymore?" Selphie asked.

"There's a global wide interference jam of some sort. Its called the GRIPH," Squall answered.

Nida nodded his head. "That's right, Global Radio Interference PHenomena. It all started out of the blue about eighteen years ago right around the end of the Sorceress War. Most researchers don't believe thats a mere coincident. But no one knows for sure why it started. It blocks out any radio signals. Over the years we've managed to be able to reestablish some radio use through SEMP radios but they only work over short distances and require relay towers for longer distances. That's why all of our global communications are through online messaging, cable phone lines and mail couriers."

"I wonder if they'll ever fix it?" Selphie asked.

"I'm sure they will figure it out at some point." Nida and the other SeeD waved goodbye to the others and walked off.

Selphie turned to Zell and Squall. "Oh well. Ok I'm gonna get out of here, I'll see you guys around." She waved then turned right starting off towards the dorms.

"Yea I'm gonna get out of here to. I'll talk to you later Squall." Zell gave Squall the peace gesture with his hand then walked off in the same direction Selphie had gone. Squall was about to go himself but decided to go for a quick walk to clear his head and help him stay awake. He walked back to the Main Hall and as he made his way around to the front elevators he Xu, Quistis and Cid Kreamer standing by the directory. He decided to walk over and see if he could get some idea of how he did. As he approached he picked up a bit of what Xu was saying.

"Its unfortunate that it all played out this way," Cid lamented.

"Yes sir, it really is," Xu added. "We just received word from the Dollet Parliament and the Prime Minister that the Galbadians have agreed to withdraw as long as the tower remains operational and the uplink remains intact."

"In any case, it's just good that their out of there and they stay out," Quistis commented.

"You know, I hate to agree with the GFAs but we could have made more money if we had stayed and been the ones to drive them out instead of letting the Dollet military do it," Xu casually remarked. She had a sly grin etched across her face.

Cid nodded slowly in agreement. "Yes but it was their decision to finish the fight with out our help."

It was at this point that Squall walked up to the group and got Xu's attention. She turned to him with an approving grin. "Hey there! You did pretty well from what I'm hearing."

Quistis grinned and crossed her arms. "Of course he did, he's my best student. He's not very social though."

Squall nodded but didn't respond. He wasn't used to receiving complements and didn't know how to handle them. Quistis walked up closer to Squall to speak with him some more. "The results from the exam should be in soon. I think you did great so don't worry about it too much."

"So how did it feel out there on the battlefield Squall?" Cid asked.

Squall thought for a moment. He felt a lot of things back in Chartersville but he had mastered suppressing them all. And he'd learned a lot of hard lessons about the realities of warfare and combat; including the realization that nothing ever prepared you completely for your first real battle. Squall decided that he did not want to share his thoughts on the subject with anyone. He decided to give a real general answer. "Sir, it was an honor to fight for Garden and actually make a difference on a real battlefield. I look forward to being a SeeD."

"That's the spirit my boy! I'm sure you will make a fine SeeD. As a matter of fact, I am certain of it."

Squall noticed that Cid gave him a serious look during that last statement; as if he could read Squall's future or something. He was starting to get a little weirded out with all the destiny and fate nonsense he was hearing from everyone. Squall saluted all three of them then quickly turned back towards the library on his way back to the dorms. As he was walking he saw Seifer standing by the entrance to the library. He lowered his head and decided he was going to just walk by him with out even looking up. He'd had about enough of Seifer's ego for one day.

"Did you hear about the communication tower?"

Squall stopped and let out a long sigh before turning to face Seifer. Seifer continued his statement.

"We would have been heroes if it weren't for that order to withdraw."

"You were only looking for a fight Seifer. You didn't care about Dollet. Or the cadets you put at risk by going out of your way to look for a fight." Quistis stated. She and Xu must have heard Seifer as they were walking towards them.

Seifer wasn't in the mood for any sarcasm or bullshit from Quistis Trepe. "My dear Instructor, I am hurt by those rather cruel words for such an aspiring student." He narrowed his vision on her. "A half-ass, untalented instructor like you would never understand."

Quistis took a step back, as if punched in the stomach by Seifer's remark. She was the youngest Instructor in Garden and many other Instructors' believed she didn't have what it took to teach cadets properly. Seifer knew she was sensitive about this and knew his remark had cut her deeply.

"Watch your tongue cadet! Quistis is a superior officer and you will show her respect! And don't be so full of yourself you arrogant, egotistical fuck. Your bullshit got other cadets killed! Their blood is on your hands." Xu snapped back. She walked in a little closer to Seifer and stuck her finger in his face, "You will be taking all the responsibility for disobeying orders and leaving that square!"

"I don't see why you're so pissed. Isn't it the captain's duty to take the best possible action? We would have taken that tower if we didn't get the withdraw order. Its unfortunate that those cadets died and if I was there I would have fought to cover them. But this was a real battle and quick decisions have to be made."

Xu was red at this point. "Seifer, you will never be a SeeD. Calling yourself a Captain is a fucking joke!" She turned back to Quistis who looked half enraged and half on the verge of tears. "Come on Quistis; let's go get something to drink."

They turned to leave and saw Headmaster Cid standing there with a serious and solemn look on his face. Behind him stood General Crace, who seemed to have appeared out of ladies walked around them and then out of sight. Cid waved them by and then walked up to Seifer, who was seething with so much anger he was lightly shaking.

"Seifer. You will be disciplined for your actions. Chances are you will even be expelled. I may not look like it now but I was an excellent soldier in the Balamb army as a military scout. They are the elite soldiers picked from the best of Balamb's army and we did most of our work alone and had to improvise a lot. But even then, we always followed orders and that is something you have not learned to do."

Crace stepped forward and closed the distance with Seifer, getting almost in his face. "I am disappointed Seifer. I had high hopes for both you and Squall. The true path of the warrior is not for one's own selfish desires. It is not for your glory and vanity but for the benefit of others."

Cid's eyes seemed to soften a bit and showed pity for Seifer. "Listen Seifer, I am not with out sympathy for you. I don't want my soldiers becoming mindless machines that will follow any order. I want you all to still be able to think and act for yourselves and to always do what you believe to be right. I am-"

"Headmaster, you have some urgent business in your office."

Three GFAs walked up to the group, followed by four SeeD MPs behind them.

You have business with Master NORG that needs your immediate attention. Its about your decision at the meeting earlier," a Faculty Assistant stated loudly. Seifer and Squall turned to see the group standing behind them with that same robotic look they always had.

Cid nodded to him but tried to continue talking. "There are so many issues at hand here. There's something that I need to tell both of you-"

"Cid! Now. NORG isn't used to waiting."

Squall watched the four SeeD MPs stepped towards Cid in an intimidating, and even a threatening, manner.

This resulted in General Crace stepping out in front of Cid. He kept his hands grasped behind his back in a relaxed manner. "He'll go when he's all done. Now run along."

Seifer and Squall took a step back, giving the stand off between the MPs and Crace a bit more room incase it went south. They did not want to be near General Crace if those two blades came out of their sheathes. They looked at each other in shock. No one else was around to see this and neither of them could believe that this looked like it was about to go down.

The MPs looked at each other then back at Crace and narrowed their eyes. There was a sort of animosity-based rivalry between SF and MP at Garden over who had more power and authority and got more of the budget.

There was another silent pause where time seemed to slow down and nothing happened. But both Seifer and Squall could sense what was about to happen. Suddenly one of the MPs stepped forward and drew his service weapon, raising it to shoot Crace. The general's eyes narrowed and his hands came around to his front. He used his junction enhanced strength and speed to close the distance between them and slapped the weapon back down then struck the MP in the chest with an open palm strike. His enhanced strength sent the MP sprawling back several feet onto his back. The other three raised their weapons to fire but Crace again was a step a head of them all. Drawing his sword and dagger, he cut through two of the MP's weapons with little effort then swept the leg of one and followed up with an elbow strike. The MP went down hard and did not get back up. Then with his right hand he reached out and grabbed the other MP and swung around before launching him at the fourth MP. The third MP smashed into the fourth and went down. The fourth MP shook off the attack and regained his balance, this one holding an M4 carbine rifle. But when he looked up the General had already closed the distance and stood in front of him, with his dagger up against his throat. He held the other MP on the ground at bay with his rapier. The whole fight had started and finished in ten seconds.

"General, I believe that will be all. Point made. Gentleman, lets forget this unfortunate event and call it a night." Cid stated. He turned to the horrified GFAs and stated he would go and speak with NORG now.

The general backed away from the MPs, who quickly woke their comrades up and assisted them to their feet. They gave the general death glares but backed off for now and walked back over to the GFAs.

"Another time then Crace," one of the MPs replied. He was a sergeant with dead looking gray eyes and several scars around his right ear and cheek. His name plate on his armor had the last name _Killingsworth _on it.

General Crace ignored the comment and continued walking off with Headmaster Kramer. Everyone else quickly went their separate ways except for a single GFA that managed to regain most of his composure. He approached Seifer.

"SeeD shall not act beyond the exact wording of a contract. We are not some non-profit organization. The Dollet Dukedom learned that lesson the hard way. They chose to withdraw our troops and took massive casualties to successfully drive Galbadia out. Next time they will be more generous to SeeD. Seifer, you will have a hearing arranged by the head members of the Disciplinarian Committee to decide your fate here at Garden." He turned and left Squall and Seifer standing alone by the library entrance.

Seifer gave Squall another look, a vicious grin forming on his face. "One day soon, I'll be more powerful than even General Crace."

With out another word, Seifer turned and walked off toward the dorms. Squall knew Seifer was a talented fighter but without discipline and honor he would be nothing more than a common thug. As soon as Seifer was out of sight, Squall decided to go to the cafeteria, grab something to drink, and wait there for announcements.

* * *

Right around 9:45pm a voice came on over the PA system.

"Will all SeeD candidates that participated in today's exam please report to their home rooms. That is all."

Squall didn't wait another second. He immediately took off in the direction of the elevators. When he got to them he mashed the button and heard a single bell go off before the elevator doors opened. He took the elevator up to the seventh floor, exited and made his way to the hallway where he saw many of the SeeD candidates already waiting around in the hallway. There was always so much tension in the air that no one ever wanted to wait in their classrooms. And as such waiting in the hallways together had become a sort of unofficial tradition for the senior classes each year. There were even plenty of younger students from the junior, sophomore and freshman classes that would show up to support their older friends and siblings.

Amongst the crowds he spotted Fujin and Raijin but didn't see Seifer anywhere. Fujin looked at Squall and her face washed over with anger. Raijin walked over to Squall and pointed back to Fujin.

"Fujin says that it will be your fault if Seifer doesn't make SeeD SF. She can be pretty scary when she's mad ya know."

"Whatever."

"Squall! Over here!" a voice shouted. He turned to see Zell waving him over to where he and Selphie stood. He would have much rather preferred to stand by himself but he saw this as an opportunity to get away from Raijin. He gave Raijin a look then walked over to where Selphie and Zell stood.

Zell began to pace back and forth which caused Selphie to giggle a little. "Zell, calm down already, I'm sure we all made it. Squall, tell him that he'll be fine.'

Squall leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms. He said nothing to either of them and made no attempt to calm Zell's nerves.

Selphie shook her head and looked at Squall in a dumbfounded manner. "You don't really like talking to people or socializing do ya?"

Squall continued his blank stare then replied in a bland monotone of voice. "No." For him, this was the moment of truth. He wasn't concerned with Zell's nerves.

Selphie opened her mouth to comment back but was cut off by the sound of the PA system coming to life. A moment later Cid's voice came over the air.

"Attention everyone, I will now read off the names of cadets that passed the exam, starting with the medic classes, followed by engineer and finally SF cadets."

Cid began reading off names at a quick pace, just slow enough for people to understand. Roars and cheers of victory erupted from further down the hall as the medic and engineering classes were announced. Then Cid got to the SF classes and began reading out the names. And then he got to Squall's group.

Zell heard has name announced and let out a victory cry followed by a back flip before scooting over towards the elevator. Selphie jumped up and squealed in delight when she heard her name called, dancing back and forth before running over to join Zell in celebration. And then finally, Squall heard his name announced. An overwhelming sense of pride and accomplishment flooded through him and he struggled to keep his excitement contained. He'd made it. He was a top tier, elite warrior. He was now a SeeD SF operator. Zell and Selphie ran over to him, congratulating his victory. And Squall, for just that moment, allowed himself to a small grin then thanked them both and returned his congrats to Zell and Selphie for passing.

"That is all passing cadets. Now I'd like the graduating MOS senior classes to come up to my office, one MOS at a time, starting with the SF senior classes."

Together, with the rest of the new SeeD SF operators, they made their way back to the elevators.

Cid's office was a deceptively large space in the shape of "D" that reminded him of a sort of throne room. Towards the back of the curve was Cid's massive desk and what looked like some royal chair a king would sit in. Squall noticed that the entire office seemed to be encased in glass and looked more like the bridge of a ship with a massive sunroof than a normal office. Just inside the glass hung six large curtains and several banners with Balamb Garden's insignia on it. A large meeting table lined the one side of the room. There other had a large interactive monitor and several electronic devices attached to it. Squall guess they probably connected Cid directly into the Command Room. Off to the right side of his desk was a glass container with a decorated hand and half sword lying on satin. It had the Balamb military symbol on it.

The three classes lined up in front of Cid's desk and saluted the Headmaster. A Garden Faculty Assistant stood to the left of the Headmaster and General Crace stood to his right.

"These are the SeeD special forces cadets who passed today's exam," the FA announced.

"Excellent," Cid replied. He stood from his large chair and grabbed a box out from one of the drawers then walked around to the front of the desk.

"First of all, I want to say congratulations. And secondly, I want to have a moment of silence for our fallen comrades."

Everyone lowered their heads and closed their eyes for several moments, letting the reality of those losses set in. Cid had warned them before the examine that watching their friends die would not be easy. And to that extent he'd spoken the truth. After another moment of silence went by, Cid again spoke.

"You have honored us with the years of training and dedication you've devoted to this institution. We welcome you to our ranks. However, from now on as members of SeeD, and especially as SeeD special forces operatives, you will be dispatched all over the world for all types of missions. Sometimes with very short notice. And these missions can be across the military and political spectrum. It could be a mission that is a simple protection duty of a foreign dignitary for months at a time or a single military action to alter the course of world events. And everything in between. I want you all to keep that in mind. Now, we are proud to introduce these new mercenary soldiers as SeeDs of Balamb Garden. You are now the elite combat specialists of Garden." The Headmaster seemed to hesitate for a second before continuing. "This is only one aspect of SeeD however. When the time comes-"

"Sir we are running out of time before your next meeting, please hurry this up," the Garden Faculty Assistant member interrupted.

Squall watched General Crace give the GFA a poisonous glare but let it go when Headmaster Cid turned to him and shook it off.

The GFA turned his attention to the SeeDs before continuing. "SeeD SF operators are a valuable asset to Garden. Its reputation is solely dependent on each one of you. Handle your missions with care and honor." He turned back to the Headmaster. "Is that what you wanted to say, Sir?"

It was Cid's turn to glare at him for a moment. "Yes, thank you for your input. Now, there are two graduating cadets that are to receive special honors for their actions during the exam that showed bravery, leadership qualities and excellent decision making skills. Would Nida Stevenson and Squall Leonhart step forward.

The two SeeDs hesitantly stepped forward, neither of which knew this extra honor was coming. Squall didn't know what he'd done that stood out any more than anyone else. After all, the way he saw it was that they all had risked their lives in Dollet.

Cid removed two sergeant patches from the box he was holding. He first walked over to Nida and placed the patch in his hand then leaned in and whispered something about standing out coming naturally when you do your best. Nida thanked the Headmaster. Then Cid walked over Squall and placed a the stripes in his hand, leaning over give Squall his own personal thoughts.

"Finally a gunblade specialist. Now your true purpose begins."

Squall nodded and quietly thanked the Headmaster for the honor. Cid stepped away from Squall and then addressed the rest of the cadets. "These two cadets have earned the privilege of graduating at the rank of sergeant. We will trust them to continue to use excellent judgement in a leadership capacity in the field."

Cid walked back to the center of the group and saluted the group of SeeDs. They saluted him back before the GFA stepped forward. "This ends the SeeD inauguration. Dismissed!"

They managed to keep themselves together until they got into the elevators. The second the elevator doors shut, they all went wild, cheering and congratulating each other. Several cadets, now SeeDs, personally congratulated Squall and Nida, both of whom accepted the praise humbly.

When the elevator doors opened back up on the seventh floor, a large group of cadets stood waiting to meet them. This included many of the engineering and medic cadets and cadets in lower grades but also Seifer, Raijin and Fujin as well. They walked up to the group that Nida and Squall seemed to unofficially lead and stood quietly for a moment. Seifer then stepped forward with a genuine look of pride and humility on his face and began to clap. The others joined in and the newly appointed SeeDs bowed modestly to them and then each other and thanked them for their appreciation and support.

Afterwards, they had all gone their separate ways. Squall got back to his dorm and walked straight into his room. He sat for a moment, allowing all of today's events to replay in his mind. He'd fulfilled his life long goal of becoming a SeeD and silently swore to himself that he'd bring victory and success to Garden for the school's honor but also for the cadets that had fallen in combat earlier. Just because he didn't socialize or get close to anyone, didn't mean he'd ever forget those that died for Garden. He would dedicate his career to advancing Garden and then...well Squall didn't really know what then or what else.

He had spent so much time prepping to become a SeeD that he never thought about where his life would go from that point. Of course he knew he would end up being constantly sent all over the world on different missions. And that this would occupy most of his time. But even the SF operators had lives outside of work. And when it came to life outside the mission, Squall had made no preparations or plans. He'd never thought to and had written off emotional attachments and relationships as distractions and weakness. Would he be alone forever? Thats what he always told himself that he wanted. And after all, his job would certainly allow him to live that way. To be a lone wolf for the rest of his career.

And just like that there was a small doubt that popped into existence deep inside his mind. How did lone wolves usually make out in the wilderness? Usually they did not last too long. He suddenly found himself thinking back to what both Zell and his mom had said about friendships and family. He had a moment of genuine conflict as one side of his mind was certain that closing off his heart and dedicating his life to being a profession cold hearted killing machine was the only safe move. While the other pondered the idea of what it would be like to have friendships, relationships and even love. Could it be possible that those things would make him even stronger?

As hard as he tried to make sense of it all, his mind was exhausted and he knew that no answers would come to him at this point. Deciding not think about it anymore, he changed out of his cadet uniform for the last time, respectfully folding it and hanging it up. Then he hopped into the shower, working out all the kinks while cleaning himself. After that he jumped into bed and shut his eyes. Tomorrow was going to be a busy day. He needed to go the infirmary and get his MEIJI injection, get his weapons and then finally move into his new apartment.

And then there was also the SeeD Inaugural Ball. A formal party held to welcome all the new SeeDs from all the job classes. Squall would rather not go but it was tradition and a good way to meet some of the higher ups. It would look bad if he skipped it.

Squall forced himself to stop thinking about everything else and only concentrated on sleep. And with in minutes, he was out cold.

* * *

NOTES: Well another chapter done. I decided to make the aftermath of the field exam a little darker, sad and gruesome in order to really drive home the consequences of a first battle for the cadets. I always thought that the cadets simply hopping off the boat and then heading back to Garden like nothing major happened at all was unrealistic and borderline lazy writing. And how the hell did only four cadets graduate in the game? There were several of those ships shown during the game movie and they had to be full of cadets. Anyways, I did say this was a reimagining of the FF8 and I fully intend on expanding on most of the scenes from the game. ALSO, the year in the game is 2211, not 3211 as I have posted in the previous two chapters...typo. Sorry about that.

Hope you enjoy!


	7. Leveling Up

**Chapter 7**

**Leveling Up**

Thursday, May 5th, 2217NE

8:00am

Squall woke up and got dressed right away. He threw on a pair of blue jeans and sneakers and grabbed a black t-shirt with a Balamb Garden symbol outlined in white on the back. He tossed the shirt on, brushed his teeth, grabbed his keys and wallet and then quickly exited his dorm. Squall made his way around from the dormitory to the main hall and then to the infirmary. He had an appointment for junctioning at 8:45am and he wanted to be early. He entered the infirmary and walked up to the receptionist desk where two girls in a cadet uniforms where seated. When the one girl looked up she immediately smiled and elbowed the other, who looked up and instantly turned a slight shade of red at the sight of the SeeD standing in front of her.

"Um, may I help you Squall-er, I mean, Sgt. Leonhart?" The female cadet's voice squeaked slightly mid sentence, a bit of excitement and nervousness slipping through. The girl's face switched to a mortified look of embarrassment. She closed her eyes then looked down and reopened them to avoid eye contact. Next to her the other receptionist sat leaned back into her chair, clearly amused by her struggling colleague.

Squall cocked an eyebrow. "Yes, I have an appointment for MEIJI particle treatment."

"Ok, um, Dr. Kadowaki and Dr. Ling are handling that today. You're a bit of a celebrity around here actually so thats how I know who you are. I don't mean that in a creep way, lots of female cadets know you from your academic success and physical build-no! I meant physical achievements..."

The other female cadet sitting next to her snorted and while trying to conceal her laughter. Then she leaned over to her friend. "You have derailed."

Trying her best to ignore her friend and salvage the situation, the girl slid a set of forms on a clipboard over to Squall. "Please take these forms and fill them out for me. After that you'll be called back to the secure area when they're ready for you."

Squall nodded politely to the nurse then turned and walked into the waiting room. Behind him Squall heard the second cadet burst out laughing and then the first tell her to shut up. He wondered if the whole cadet heart throb status would start to recede now that he was no longer a student. The fact that he was bunched together with Seifer in any kind of social manner aggravated him to no end. He really didn't care for it and never asked for any extra attention. He didn't need his ego stroked like Seifer did.

Inside the waiting area were several other newly appointed SeeDs waiting for their second injections. Most of the new SeeDs didn't look up, obviously too focused on the forms and their own excitement of becoming advanced. Then Squall looked to his left and saw Nida look up from his paperwork. He greeted Squall with a silent nod and gestured to the empty seat next to him. Squall accepted the invitation and quickly walked over to occupy the empty chair. He quickly began filling out the forms and for a few moments, only the sound of pens moving around on paper could be heard.

When Nida had seen that Squall was just about finished, he leaned over and spoke quietly. "So here we are Sergeant. Finally SeeDs. Did you know ahead of time that we'd be getting that rank at the induction ceremony?"

Squall wasn't really in the mood for talking, as usual, but decided to break with the stoic demeanor for a moment and converse with Nida. After all, they were technically in the same exact situation. "I didn't know. I didn't ask for it either. We all risked our lives out there."

"I feel the same way. But SeeD has decided to trust us with entry level supervision spots. The increased pay doesn't hurt either."

Squall cocked his head slightly in agreement. _Thats true. I don't mind the pay increase._

"Although, to be honest, every time a SeeD spec ops team is sent on any mission there's always a team leader designated if no higher ranked SeeD is dispatched along with them. So the way I see it is that either of us could be picked as a team leader for one of our first missions and end up in a supervisor position anyway."

"We all get basic training for entry level supervisor procedures during our senior year so we'll do fine."

This time it was Nida that quietly nodded then switched topics.

"You going to the service for the fallen cadets tonight?"

"Absolutely," Squall replied. He hadn't been friends with any of the deceased cadets but he did know most of them and had respect for several of them. And part of being an honorable warrior was remembrance of the dead and respect for the fallen.

"That's good to hear. I'll be there as well."

Neither SeeD made another statement and both went back to finishing their paperwork. They finished the forms at the same time and then returned to the reception area where only the second cadet was now seated. When Squall handed in the forms, the second medical cadet had a sly grin across her face.

"Sorry about my friend. But she's a fan and it was her first time talking to you."

Nida handed his papers in as well then gave Squall a confused look. The cadet receptionist noticed and proceeded to explain the encounter to Nida. Nida laughed out loud and clapped his hands a few times and as they walked back to the waiting area, Nida couldn't resist saying something.

"Ya know, Saturday is the SeeD Ball and I bet you don't have a date yet."

Squall scoffed and gave Nida an annoyed look. "I'm only going because it would look bad not to go so I don't need a date and I don't plan on staying too long."

Nida put his hands up defensively. "Ok, ok, I was just trying to look out for a fellow supervisor."

"Enough with the supervisor camaraderie talk already."

"You got it," Nida replied as he shook his head a chuckled a little more.

They both returned to their seats and sat quietly with out talking to each other again. Nida flipped through a _Combat King _magazine while Squall chose the latest issue of _Weapons Monthly_. As with most issues, there wasn't anything on gunblades in the magazine. They were probably the rarest weapons around anymore and as such did not have to much time dedicated to them with in the weaponry circles of writers. As a matter of fact, the last time he'd even seen something written about the gunblade was an article about how they'd become obsolete, stating that they were an antiquated relic based on a type of weapon from the Centran Empire that had no realistic place in a modern military. Squall found the article to be offensive and obviously written by some ignorant individual that had no real knowledge or skill regarding the gunblade.

He was just about done with the magazine and ready to toss it back down when he noticed and article towards the back about the Guardian Forces. A history professor at the University of Southern Balamb had written an article on theories of their existence and their use by SeeD Special Forces. It made Squall think back to his encounter with Ifrit and the cryptic message the GF had stated to him. He began to read through the article, interested to see what insight the USB researcher had and skimmed through until he found a certain paragraph...

_ ...SeeD's that receive both MEIJI particle treatments are gifted with a substantial increase in both magical and physical attributes like strength and stamina. But some studies of human GF use have shown a rumored side effect of memory loss. This loss has been reported to be gradual; tending to effect memories of the user's distant past; either altering the perceived memory, removing fragments or deleting it all together. And often times with out the user realizing it. However, this side effect has not been proven and it is highly doubtful that Garden would be willing to relinquish any data on the topic nor would it allow any outside study. And, to the vexation of many of Balamb's citizens, Garden officials continue to keep the secrets of GF junctioning and the MEIJI particle classified. _

Ah, the consequences of living in a Constitutional Republic with Democratically elected leaders, Squall thought. Balamb was a truly free country and as such had freedom of speech which plenty of Balamb citizens and scholars used to question Garden's presence on the island country and their existence at all. Not to mention the criticism Garden received for the secret super soldier program using ethereal radiation from Guardian Forces. Many citizens believed that Garden caused way more threats towards the country versus the number of threats it prevented by its actions. Squall shrugged that sentiment off mentally and kept reading...

_ ...also interesting is that the ancient Centrans had legends about extremely powerful magic users with GFs literally junctioned directly to themselves that could, with enough focus, summon that GF to them for aid or protection. While this is considered myth by almost all researchers, some scientists state that it might have been possible with a strong enough link to one of the mysterious creatures. _

_ Little remained after the the sudden annihilation of the Centran Empire that occurred just over two thousand years ago. And this left scientists with little evidence to tell us about what the Centrans knew, how advanced their technology and magical abilities were, and what caused their destruction. One surviving document from that era speaks of the empire's political elite becoming obsessed over increasing the potency of their magical and military power, causing them to commune with darker spirits to obtain knowledge that was evil and forbidden. This caused them to go mad, creating a destructive entity called 'The Omega Weapon.' _

_ While there is no description of just what the weapon was or what it did, the artifact does mention that the Centrans lost control of it. And that it's existence offended Hyne so greatly that he struck the continent with a great and terrible force, wiping it out and stopping the entity. This destruction scattered its surviving people to the two remaining continents of Palmyra and Tracia. And this exodus caused the loss of the vast majority of the power and knowledge Hyne had granted them up to that point._

_ Several archeological excavations conducted on the site believed by most historians to be where the capital city of Bryn Mahr was located did reveal evidence suggesting a large object striking the Centran Continent. There's also theories pushing the narrative that a Lunar Cry was responsible for the destruction. Although this is regarded by most scientists as speculation because it would have meant a Lunar Cry ten times more massive than even the largest one ever recorded in human history. If true, this apocalyptic Cry obliterated an entire continent, plunging large portions of the land into the ocean. After the fall of the Centrans there wouldn't be another major centralized kingdom or government again until the founding of the Dollet by the first Duke some 600 years ago..."_

Squall didn't bother reading anymore and put the magazine back down on the table then leaned back into his chair to think.

_The Centran Continent gets annihilated and the survivors all end up on the two remaining continents of Palmyra and Tracia...they must have really fucked up._

The article didn't provide any insight into what Ifrit could have possibly have meant when he told Squall that he had an important fate. Or that he was missing something important to help him realize his maximum potential and true strength. Just what exactly are the Guardian Forces?

People on Terra were divided over the issue of the GFs and the existence of Hyne. There were those that believed that Hyne was a myth. They thought of the GFs as nothing more than ancient monsters, all of which had evolved into super beings over the thousands of years they had resided on this planet. And then there were those with religion. They believe that Hyne exists and believe the GFs to be divine beings under Hyne's command.

Squall based his life on principles of education, military and physical training, combined with the use of logic and reason. And he shelved emotions and feelings as often as possible, considering them weakness. And yet the concept of a higher power governing the universe was reasonably plausible. Squall would probably settle for faith in powers greater than himself if he were to have to explain it to someone and simply leave it there. Not that he would have to explain to anyone since he had no one close enough to him in his life that would ever ask something like that. Nor did he care at all what anyone else's opinion was.

Another fifteen minutes went by and during that time several other SeeDs, including Nida, were called in by the nurses to start the treatment. Squall was about to reach for the _Combat King _magazine that Kida had been reading when a nurse walked into the room and called his name.

"Squall Leonhart, the doctor will see you now."

Squall followed her past the reception desk and through the double doors then down a hallway to another set of double doors that Squall had never seen the other side of before. These doors were solid steel and securely locked. In front of the doors stood a smaller MP guard house. Two uniformed SeeD MPs currently stood watch and were in full combat armor equipped with AR-15s. As the nurse walked Squall up to them, he noticed a grenade launcher stowed in the guard house incase extra firepower was required. None of this surprised Squall in the least seeing as how the storage and injection procedures were heavily guarded secrets.

The nurse spoke briefly to the MPs and presented several forms to them with Squall's information to confirm his clearance to the treatment centers. Once that was done, one of the MPs walked back into the guard house and plugged a few things into his computer. This was followed by a loud, electronic unlocking sound coming from the doors before they began to open. Squall and the nurse walked through the doors into another hallway and were met by another set of double steel doors. Behind them the first doors closed and locked. The the next set of doors opened. On the other side of those were three elevators. The nurse walked over the center elevator and pressed the call button. The elevator doors opened and both SeeDs walked in. The panel inside the elevator had only an up and down button present along with the standard emergency button. Squall saw the nurse press the down button and the elevator took off, dropping down into one of the subbasement levels below.

When the elevator stopped moving, the doors slid open again revealing a large sized underground medical wing divided into smaller exam rooms. Squall had never been down here before. The nurse lead him down the connecting corridor to a large centralized nursing station. Located there were several office cubicles, a receptionist desk, and a single enclosed doctors office room. Further down the corridor at the far end was another set of heavy steel security doors. On one of the doors was a sign with _MEIJI Particle Storage _written on it. Each of the exam rooms had sliding doors made up of tinted glass. Squall noted that most of the exam rooms had their sliding doors closed.

The nurse checked in with another medical SeeD working at the receptionist desk then had Squall follow her over to exam room nine. Inside was an exam bed, and a few cabinets connected to a table counter with several medical instruments placed on it. The nurse gestured for Squall to take a seat on the examination bed then turned and left the room, closing the sliding door behind her. For several minutes he sat there in complete silence. Then the door opened and Dr. Kadowaki and Dr. Ling entered the exam room. Dr. Ling was a small, skinny man with short black hair and thin wire-rimmed glasses.

"Hello Squall, how are you today?" Dr. Kadowaki asked.

"I'm fine doctor."

"Congratulations on becoming a SeeD Sergeant." She leaned in closer and examined the scar on his forehead. "I see this has healed fairly well. The scar will be permanent though. But the ladies love scars on a man. And I heard you've managed to add several more to your body. Good job." She laughed a little at her own comments.

Squall let out a sigh. "Whatever."

"Well I just wanted to come in and check up on you. Dr. Ling will be giving you your MEIJI injection, IV drip and be monitoring you during the process. It will take a few hours to complete. Take care Squall and good luck with your career."

"Thank you doctor, I'm sure I'll be back in the infirmary with new injuries for you to laugh at." Squall was half serious about his comment.

The doctor laughed as she turned to walk out. "Well then, I'll see you soon."

Dr. Ling stepped forward holding an armored case that was locked with a digital combination lock. He placed the case on the counter and picked up a stethoscope

"Good morning Sgt, I'm Dr. Ling. Could you strip down to you boxers and place your clothing on the seat next to you. The necklace as well please."

Squall followed the instructions then allowed Dr. Ling to listen to his heart and lungs. Next he checked Squall's ears and nose with an otoscope, his eyes with an ophthalmoscope and checked his blood pressure with an arm cuff. Lastly, he checked over squall's wounds from the SeeD exam to observe the current state of the healing process.

"Your wounds have healed up very well. You body reacts particularly well to Garden's medical and magical tech. How are you feeling today otherwise? No feelings of illness, weakness or dizziness? No pain anywhere in your body?"

Squall shook his head. "No sir, lieutenant. I feel fine."

"Ok great. We can begin the treatment momentarily then."

Dr. Ling turned and wrote down some notes on Squall's medical charts then left the room momentarily. He returned a minute later with a nurse in tow that was holding an IV bag.

"Ok Sgt. Leonhart, I'm sure you know all about this procedure but for legal purposes I have to explain everything to you before we proceed. This is your second and final MEIJI injection. The IV solution contains a combination of chemicals designed to ease the absorption of the injection and protect your body from the damaging effects of the radiation. As such, you'll be on the IV for an hour first to allow it to circulate through your body before the injection is given. This current MEIJI particle mix includes ethereal radiation collected and refined from sites of Ifrit, Shiva, Quezacotl, Carbuncle and Siren. It will increase your magical strength, the speed at which you can cast magic and increase your magical stamina. Your physical strength and speed and your reflexes will also increase. And it will also toughen your body, making your more resistant to injury. Serious symptoms like trouble breathing or chest pains during the procedure need to be reported immediately. You may feel some mild side effects after the procedure is finished including dizziness, nausea or headache. I need you to be honest with me and report any of those symptoms and their severity. Lastly, the effects of the MEIJI treatment last between thirty and forty years. Do you have any questions?"

"How often does the GF mix change? And is there a difference?"

"The mix differs slightly batch to batch but honestly doesn't make any difference that we've been able to detect or quantify in any way. The last batch had some Brothers and Leviathan mixed into it but was missing Shiva and Carbuncle. Although, hypothetically, receiving a junction from a much more powerful GF like Odin, Bahamut or even Griever could result in unknown levels of physical and magical enhancement. Or it could kill you instantly. We've never found any ethereal radiation of theirs. Any other questions?"

"Whats my down time afterwards?"

After the procedure is done you will be required to stay for another thirty to sixty minutes for observation during which you will receive instruction on the proper use of junction enhancements. So basically you need to be taught how not to kill yourself or unintentionally kill anyone else."

Squall looked down and nodded. "I understand. I'm ready."

"OK, I'm gonna have you sign your DR919 consent form and then we'll begin with the IV drip."

Squall gave a nod to the doctor as he walked out to retrieve the form. He closed his eyes and took a deep breathe. It was time to get his enhancements and commit to this life.

A little over sixty minutes later the nurse and doctor checked Squall's vitals again then asked him how he was feeling. Squall told them he was still doing just fine and ready for the doctor nodded then he walked over to the locked case and plugged in the code. There was a quick mechanical sound of two locks sliding followed by a electronic beeping sound. Dr. Ling opened the case, revealing an auto-injector gun and a single vile of a glowing red substance. He then grabbed a pair of rubber gloves from a box in one of the cabinets and placed them on his hands. Squall watched Dr. Ling load the vial into the injector while the nurse swabbed a spot on his upper left arm to disinfect it. After that, the doctor walked over to Squall, placed the injector gun to his skin and pulled the trigger, shooting a needle into his body. The second the fluid hit his blood stream it spread throughout his vascular system almost instantaneously. It felt like a cold electrical surge enveloped Squall's entire body and he immediately felt more alert and energized. He looked down at himself and saw most of the blood vessels close to the surface of his skin seemed to glow as the MEIJI particles went to work, imbedding themselves into his muscles, bones, nerves and skin. He also noticed he could see and hear and smell everything with greater contrast and sharpness. The sudden surge of new information momentarily overloaded Squall. This forced him to have to close his eyes and really focus on quieting his senses. But he seemed to push further into his own mind and began to lose consciousness; his head slumping over.

"Squall, can you hear me?" The doctor asked. When he didn't get a response, he and the nurse shared a concerned look. The the doctor noticed that Squall seemed to have suddenly stopped breathing. He rushed out of the room and called for a team to prep for a possible code and flatline, yelling for adrenaline to be brought to the room.

While all around him medical chaos began to break out, Squall swore he heard a faint whisper of several voices in his mind.

_He is chosen...Fate has decided...Destiny shall test him...She will save him and he will save her...must let go of his pain and past...find his family...an evil witch gazes from far off in the distant...the truly evil one watches from his abyss...PREPARE SQUALL!_

Squall's eyes shot wide open as his heart rate spiked. He gasped for air and reached out to try to stand himself up. Several pairs of arms and hands grabbed his, keeping his on the bed. He saw a team of doctors and nurses had hooked him into a monitoring machine and that Dr. Ling held a needle full of fluid. It looked like he was getting ready to administer it to Squall.

After another moment the remaining cold, electrical feelings passed but the surge of energy remained.

"I feel energized. What happened?" Squall commented.

Dr. Ling released an audible sigh of relief. "Welp, for starters, you stopped breathing and your heart stopped for a few seconds. You fucking coded then suddenly just snapped out of it. Thats not supposed to happen and very rarely does. And when it does no one ever just snaps right out of it on their own with out emergency treatment."

Squall shook it off. "Who was yelling about fate and all that shit?"

"Nobody. You must have hallucinated that part. MEIJI has been documented as causing that. You say you feel fine right now though?" The doctor checked his heart beat, breathing and pulse again.

"Yea. Actually I feel like I could run ten miles right now."

"Initially your body will feel that extreme surge; like someone supercharged your batteries. But that will level out by the end of the day as your body comes back into balance again. You will have more energy from now on though. For now, you are staying right there while we continue to monitor you. Thats an order," Lt. Ling stated.

Squall groaned. "Fine. Whatever."

_What the hell did I just hear? Who was talking to me?_

* * *

Zell walked straight down the row of tables in the library, doing his best not to make it obvious that he was checking to see if the "Library Girl", as he called her, was working today. He stopped at the end of a large book case that gave him some decent cover. He had his MEIJI treatment scheduled in a little less than hour, the same time that Selphie's was scheduled to get hers. He had agreed to meet Selphie here but hadn't been paying attention to the time and had showed up earlier than Selphie. Or at least thats what he told himself.

_Who are you kidding? Not even yourself Dintch._

Zell had first noticed Kayla Prent, the _Library Girl_, earlier that year in line one day. Totally unprepared to meet the girl of his dreams, Zell had waited his turn in line then walked up to the front of the counter and placed his books down on the counter. When he looked up he'd been mid sentence, something about looking for a book on the history of the Balamb military when he cut himself off.

Sitting on the other side of the counter before him was a girl he found to be simply beautiful. She had her long brown hair tied into a single pigtail that wrapped around her shoulder and draped down her chest. She also had a lighter complexion and an athletic build with emerald green eyes that seemed to simply sparkle in the light. Her face had a cute, innocent and kind look to it.

Their eyes met and it looked she'd been just as smitten with him as he was her. But Zell couldn't be sure. She'd begun to answer his question.

"The book you're probably looking for is over I section four-"

"I'm Zell-" he answered at the same time. He winced slightly at the bad timing and blurting out his name.

They both turned red and looked away from each other before she had told him his name.

"I'm Kayla. I-Its nice to meet you," she stammered slightly.

Zell had quickly tanked her for her help then ran out of the library with out getting the book he was looking for...or grabbing the books he'd checked out while he'd been at the counter. And he'd felt like an idiot and been too scared that day to go back. And since then he'd seen her in passing several times and had only mentioned to offer an awkward hello once or twice.

_Hyne, I am a chicken wuss._

"Hey Zell! Whats up?"

Zell jumped and spun around, certain he'd been caught trying to look for his secret crush. Selphie stood there wearing a devilish grin across her face, gleefully proud of herself for being able to scare Zell. She had on black gym shorts with a yellow stripe on each side and a black tank top. Her next victim would definitely have to be Squall although she knew he be tougher pray.

"Ha! I got you so good. What are you standing here for anyway? It looks like you're hiding from someone. Or looking for someone."

"Ahhh...well..."

Selphie's eye's narrowed. She stepped past Zell and peered around the book shelf. The only person around was a pretty girl working behind the counter with dark brown hair tied into a single pigtail. She stepped back and gave Zell a look.

"The girl behind the counter?"

Zell released and defeated sigh and rubbed the back of his head. "Um, yea. We met a few months ago and I kind of froze up and made shit awkward and now I kind of avoid her because I feel stupid."

"But you like her?"

"Well...yes. I do like her. But I don't know what to say."

Selphie pressed her index finger to her chin, her eyes looking up and to her right. "Hmmm, well what do you know about her?"

"I know she's a junior year engineering MOS. She's probably not even single. And she probably thinks I'm some bumbling idiot."

Selphie snorted out a mousy laugh then shook her head before that devilish grin returned to her face. She LOVED playing match maker. And having the inside scoop of gossip. And relationships. And being social. And talking.

"Look, we got to get to our appointment but afterwards I'll see if I can talk to her and find anything out. Ok?"

"Yea but I'll have to approach her again at some point. She'll think I'm weird or creepy."

"That's not true silly goose. Girls like it when boys try to talk to them. Especially when they like that particular boy."

"What if she blows me off and she isn't into me. I'll feel like a dumbass."

"Well you won't know until you try. And either way you'll have your answer. Come on, we'll go out the other way. We can't be late."

* * *

"How are you feeling now Squall?" Dr Kadowaki asked.

After they'd begun monitoring him, Dr. Ling had reached out to Dr. Kadowaki and had explained what had happened then requested that she come over to examine him. She'd arrived and monitored him for an hour with out any further incident then decided he was well enough to try the completing the orientation class for the newly enhanced SeeDs on how to control their new powers.

"I feel fine," Squall replied. He crouched for a moment and then jumped into the air and noticed he could leap twice as high as he could have jumped just minutes before the shot. He also noticed his landing was as graceful as that of a cat. He turned back to the doctor and nodded in a pleased manner.

"You're showing excellent control over your MEIJI enhancements. I'm gonna clear you for active duty status at this point. You are free to go. Should any symptoms come up, do not hesitate, come see me immediately. Good luck with everything."

Squall saluted both doctors then followed the nursing staff back up to the entrance to the infirmary. Next up was a stop off at the armory to get his weapons. Now that he was spec ops, he could keep his firearms in his place.

When he arrived, he noticed the armory was crowded this morning and remembered hearing about a cadet class scheduled for the firing range. There was a mass of cadets in several lines waiting to be seen to check out their weapon. Although he didn't want to cut in line because it looked bad for a SeeD to do so, Squall was short on time today. Plus he'd both seen it done and had SeeDs do it to him in the past, and he'd kept his mouth shut and accepted it with out complain.

Squall proceeded to walk up to the counter, cutting in front of thirty cadets. He had lots to do today and decided to go ahead and pull rank.

"Hey bro, the line starts back there," one of the cadets stated in a stern voice.

Squall turned around to face the cadet and was immediately recognized by several of the others.

"Dude, that's Squall Leonhart. He's SeeD Special Forces," one cadet said.

"He made the rank of sergeant right out of graduation," another added.

The cadet who had commented to Squall backed down right away. "Sorry Sgt. Leonhart, I didn't recognize you."

"That's fine. I just need to quickly get my weapons."

Squall turned back to the counter and saw one of the SeeD MPs approach him. As the SeeD was about to ask Squall what he needed, another voice came in from the back.

"So you're a SeeD now eh? And a Sgt no less; that's fairly rare for a Cadet who just graduated to SeeD. Looks like you don't have to salute me anymore."

Squall turned to see Sgt. Varno facing Squall with a grin from ear to ear.

Squall just shrugged in response. "They saw fit to give me that rank. I'm just here to pick up my weapons."

Sgt. Varno said no more about the issue. He turned and gestured for Squall to walk over to the side entrance to the armory. Squall turned and walked over to the sturdy door and then met the Sergeant in the back room. Surrounding him was a large room with hundreds of pistols, shotguns and rifles. Farther back was another secured vault room with several types of artillery including grenades, mortars, RPGs and missile launchers.

"Ok I'll have your sidearm and rifle ready in a second."

About a minute or two later he returned with two cases, one large and one small. "Ok here is your customized HK416 Carbine with short barrel and your G34. They have both been cleaned and oiled."

Then he got the proper ammo, magazines, weapon lights and cleaning kits before separating them into two cases. He put the cases down in front of Squall.

"Will there be anything else?" Sgt. Varno asked.

Squall thought about it for a moment then pointed to one of the pistols on the wall. "I'll take that Ruger Mark IV .22 caliber. And I'll take a can for it too."

"Another good choice. I'll get one and some ammo and get a case for you."

The Mark IV was perfect for quietly dispatching enemies. A "can" was slang jargon for a firearm suppressor. It was sometimes called a silencer but this was a blatantly inaccurate term for the tool because it only reduced the amount of noise coming from gunfire, it didn't remove it completely. The exception to this was the .22 caliber pistol round. When fitted properly with a suppressor, a pistol firing a .22 caliber made no sound at all other than the mechanical sound of the gun itself chambering its next round.

Twenty minutes later Squall unlocked the door to his dorm room. He proceeded to his room and put his cases down then began to pack the small amount of clothing and other possessions he had. Squall didn't have much in the way of possessions. And as such it was always easy for Squall to move from one place to another with out much effort or time required.

From behind him he heard the door open and heard Cole's voice. "Yo Squall, you home?"

"In here." Squall answered.

Cole walked in and leaned against Squall's doorway. "So you're packing up huh? I've already moved my stuff into my new apartment. Congrats on making sergeant after the exam. I passed the engineering exam. I was ranked number one in my class so I think there's a good chance that I can get stationed in the Command Center on floor 26 handling communications."

"That's great Cole. You should be proud of yourself. I'm sure you will do fine. And I'll probably see you up there at some point."

"Thanks Squall. Do you need any help moving your stuff? They'll want this place empty for the next cadets who move in."

"Nah, I'm good."

"Well then I guess this is it. I'll see you around campus."

Squall stood up and shook Cole's hand. Squall didn't really consider Cole a friend. But then again Squall didn't consider anyone in his life a real friend. However, Squall didn't have any problem with Cole either. He was a hard worker and shared the same determination Squall had to succeed. Cole smiled and nodded then turned and walked out of the room, leaving Squall to himself.

After packing up all his things, he made the three trips up to his new apartment that was on the sixth floor. His new apartment similar to his old dorm room's design but it was bigger. The entrance led into a small hallway and that lead to a main living area. Next to that was a separate dining area and a kitchen and another hallway leading off to his bed room and bathroom. One thing he really did like was a second bedroom/office that all SeeDs got to have in their apartments. Letting out a long breath, he opened up the first box and began to unpack.

* * *

Quistis stood silently, lost in her thoughts as she took the elevator up to the fourteenth floor. She was more then a little nervous about what the Disciplinary Committee wanted to see her about. All she had been told was that it had something to do with her instruction of students. It made her think back to when she first became an instructor. She could still remember how good it had felt to graduate almost three years earlier then the other cadets in her class. And working with other SeeDs who were older than her and knowing she could hold her own with them. She'd been the talk of Garden for a while with many referring to her as a prodigy. And then making sergeant shortly afterwards and lieutenant not long after that to become and instructor. She'd worked so hard to attain that position. It had certainly been one of the happiest moments of her life. The elevator came to a stop and chimed before opening its doors.

She took in that memory for another moment then proceeded down the hallway to the Office of the Disciplinary Committee. The Disciplinary Office was the HQ for both the SeeD MPs and the Faculty Assistants. It housed their offices and the several courtrooms Garden used for military hearings.

Quistis approached the woman working behind the desk of the front office. Not surprisingly, this place always produced an ominous aura that caused any and all SeeDs entering there to fill with anxiety and fear. No one ever really got called up here for good reasons. As she was about to address the secretary, the female spoke first.

"They will see you in Courtroom C, Lt. Trepe."

Quistis slowly nodded and walked down the hall to the courtroom. She opened one of the double doors and walked through, her heart beating quicker than machine gun fire. The large courtroom was empty except for two SeeD MPs, two Garden Faculty Assistants and one judge called an GFA Magistrate.

The judge looked over to Quistis and motioned for her to come forward. "Come in Lt. Trepe, take a seat at the table up here."

Quistis walked up to the table and sat herself in the center chair. She didn't waste any time trying to figure out what this was about. The cogs of her mind immediately started spinning as her mind desperately tried to figure out what this was about.

_ I haven't done anything wrong or illegal._

"What is this about your Honor?"

"Cadet Seifer Almasy is a student of yours correct?"

"Yes."

"Later on this week when the investigation is done, Seifer will be detained by SeeD MPs and most likely receive a court martial for failing to obey orders, endangering other cadets and indirectly causing the deaths of several other cadets during a SeeD exam. He will then be expelled from Garden. We may need your presence here for that. However, right now you are here because it has become apparent to call into question your ability to properly teach and control your students."

Quistis released a frustrated sigh and sat back into her chair. This was going to be one long day.

* * *

NOTES: Not too much to explain for this chapter. Again, I hope everyone likes the fresh take I decided to put on Gfs and the junction process. I don't know if anyone picked up on the chapter's title. Its a little play on words since the characters level up in RPGs but also referred to the SeeDs receiving their upgrades. I also wanted to start the side story about Zell and the library girl and thought that throwing Selphie into the scene would be a good fit.

Next up, the SeeD Ball!


	8. Our Fate in the Stars

**Chapter 8**

**Our Fate in the Stars**

Saturday, May 7th, 2217NE

5:34pm

Squall finished folding up the last of his laundry with military like precision before placing the freshly washed clothes into the cabinets in his room before exiting. He walked over to his office where he'd set up a desk, work bench and placed the gun safe. Lying on top of the workbench was his handgun and rifle. Off to the side of the bench was the case he kept his gunblade in. It was currently empty. Yesterday morning Squall had spent a few hours in the training center battling several monster species to get some practice in. And then this morning he'd gone to the range with the pistol and rifle, going over firing drills and switching between weapons during his courses of fire. All weapons were presently cleaned and oiled and ready to be used.

Squall took both weapons and placed them back into his safe, securing them next to Revolver. Also in the safe were boxes of ammunition for all three weapons. Squall took extra time and effort to arrange everything in a neat and organized fashion. Satisfied at the lay out of his safe, Squall closed the door and listened to it lock into place. That done, he had now officially completed all the tasks he had planned for the day and now planned on relaxing. He wouldn't have to worry about any missions yet since newly appointed SeeDs didn't begin receiving orders until after the SeeD Ball. He was on his way to the kitchen to grab something to drink when he heard a knock at the door. Squall sighed in frustration and then went to see who it was. He opened it to see Zell's excited face staring back at him. Behind Zell, Selphie stood jumping up and down on one foot at a time in a joyous fashion. She had a huge grin on her face. Squall let out a low groan.

"Hello Squall!" Zell chirped.

"I see you moved all your stuff in, we have too! Isn't it great Squall, we all live on the same floor." Selphie exclaimed.

"Yea dude, we are right down the hall." Zell added.

"That's great, I'm ecstatic." Squall muttered. "Selphie, you're now a Trabian SeeD. Why did you get an apartment here?"

"Well, I was sent here to take the exam, but I also had put in my transfer papers to be stationed here after I graduated. And the transfer went through."

"I see."

"Are you going to the SeeD Ball tonight?" Zell asked.

"Yea I'll be there."

"Awesome, I'll see you there." Zell turned around and walked off down the hallway.

Selphie placed both her hands together against her chest and leaned in closer to Squall. "I'll stop by later on and make sure your ready. And don't be such a Mr. Grumpy tonight. Have some fun at the ball. Try talking to people. Who knows, you might even meet a girl there." She giggled like a little girl then turned and waved before walking off down the hall back towards her room.

Squall closed the door and went to get that drink then crashed on the couch and propped his feet up. He planned on going to that ball for appearances sake but he sure as hell did not plan on meeting or dancing with anyone. With any luck Squall could find a nice back table somewhere and hide out there until it ended. Satisfied with his plan set for remaining cloaked during the Ball, Squall took a long sip of his drink and flipped on the TV.

* * *

Several hours later, Selphie walked down the hallway donned in her new formal SeeD uniform. She liked her new outfit and thought that she had looked cute yet professional. It was now about 8:30pm at night and the Ball started at 9 o'clock. She got to Squall's door and knocked three times. A moment went by with no response, Selphie knocked again. After another moment went by with out any response, Selphie was starting to think Squall was dodging her. Not one to let someone get away from her that easily, she tried the door. To her surprise, the door opened right up. Apparently Squall must have forgotten to lock his door.

Inside, the apartment was pretty dark with the exception of some dim lighting from down the hall. The door to his room was open and the light was on. The door to his bathroom was closed but she noticed the small crack of light coming from it. Selphie suddenly felt like she had intruded where she shouldn't have and turned to leave. Just then the door opened causing her to swing back around. Out walked Squall wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist, still wet from the shower. He was drying his hair off with another towel. He took two steps before looking up and spotting Selphie in his hallway. He stopped and just looked at her for the next few seconds.

Selphie couldn't help but check Squall Leonhart out. She had heard that he was a hot bad-boy loner with a killer body and she now knew the rumors were definitely true. She stood fixated on Squall's chiseled abs and pectoral muscles. Even the alignment of his scars oozed sex appeal. After another second of silence went by, Selphie tried to snap herself out of it and say something coherent.

"I was just…..um…..yea…what?" was all Selphie managed.

Squall shook his head. "I didn't say anything Selphie."

Selphie finally got a hold of her self and tried to change the subject. "I was just checking on ya to make sure you were getting ready for the party. Go get dressed already!"

Squall nodded and walked into the room while Selphie took a seat on the couch. Squall closed the door behind him and finished drying off then threw his towels onto the bed before beginning to get dressed. Squall wasn't dumb or naive ; he knew Selphie had been checking him out. But Squall didn't work out and train to look good for ladies; he did those things to be a stronger, faster fighter. Squall trained himself to be a weapon; a killing machine.

Squall emerged from his room fifteen minutes later wearing his SeeD uniform for the first time. Selphie looked up from the couch and cracked a grin.

"Looking good handsome! Let's hit that par-tay!

Squall and Selphie made their way down the hallway to the elevator then down to the main lobby of the dormitory. From there they exited dorms and headed through the main hall to the quad wing of Garden where the SeeD Inaugural Ball would be held in the grand ballroom They made a right turn at the entrance to the quad and picked up their pace, leaving the main hall behind them. The quad had two large sets of stairs, one going to the left and one going to the right. The left set led off to the inside stage and outside recreation areas. The right set led up to the ballroom.

Squall had just taken the first step when he heard his name called out. Squall turned to see Seifer walking up to him. He motioned to Selphie to go on ahead with out him then turned back to address Seifer.

"What do you want Seifer?"

"I just wanted a quick chat with my rival, that's all." Seifer walked a little closer to Squall and leaned up against the side railing. He flashed Squall a devilish grin and looked his uniform up and down. "Well look at that, you're all dolled up in your nice SeeD outfit. Congratulations again, I'm glad you made it. I really am. I want you to have a good time at the SeeD Inaugural Ball."

"Gee thanks Seifer. I'm glad you're happy for me. We done now?"

Seifer shook his head. "All bullshit aside. We're rivals Squall. We may not like each other but I know we both have respect for each other's skills. It's best that you made it and I didn't, it works out better that way."

Squall cocked an eyebrow up in confusion. "And why would that be?"

"Because Squall, this way you and I still get to have that final showdown someday. This SeeD crap isn't really for me anyway; I just don't like to take orders from anyone. I know their gonna throw my ass out of here but that wont stop me Squall, not one bit."

"Stop you from what Seifer? You think you have this great destiny or something but you don't. SeeD SF is all shadow ops. We operate in the dark. In the background. There's never any recognition. You know that. And you've known that the whole time. You're just looking for personal glory. You don't give a shit about anything but yourself. Your ego is gonna get you killed long before we ever get to have some real showdown."

Seifer laughed out loud at Squall's comments then shook his head. "Maybe, maybe not. I guess we'll just have to wait and see. But one way or another, this world will know my name. I will be talked about for generations as one of the greatest warriors to ever live."

"Whatever Seifer, I don't care about your asinine dreams and delusions of grandeur."

"Well you should. I mean that's where you come in doesn't it? You and I are the only gunbladers at this school. How many true gunbladers are even left on the whole planet? You and I are quite the elite. Fate, destiny, or whatever the fuck you want to call it has kept us fighting against each other our whole lives so far. No reason to think it will stop now."

"So you think you and I will have a real fight to the finish one day?"

Seifer turned his back to Squall and started to walk off. "You're the one that said that the two of us will have a serious disagreement one day." Seifer waved with the back of his hand as he walked off back towards the main hall.

"Well, until that day," Squall replied.

If he was being honest with himself, Squall didn't know if he'd ever see Seifer again but he'd be ready for him if it came down to a fight. Squall turned and continued on up the steps leading to the ballroom.

Seifer reached the main hall and turned right heading for the exit. Considering everything that had happened, Seifer was still feeling pretty good. But his grin faded slightly when he saw two SeeD MPs come into view, walking directly towards him. Another two SeeD MPs walked up behind him. Completely surrounded, Seifer decided to play it cool.

"How can I help you officers tonight?"

One of them stepped forward to address Seifer. "Cadet Seifer Almasy, we need you to come with us to the MP headquarters."

"Of course Officer, no problem." Seifer replied through his false grin.

_ And so it begins._

* * *

Squall got to the top of the steps and looked around. In front of him was a table with several SeeDs sitting at it and several SeeD MPs standing by the two sets of double doors leading into the ballroom. He walked up to the table and addressed the female SeeD sitting in front of him.

"Sgt. Squall Leonhart, Special Forces."

The SeeD flipped through the sheets of paper until coming to his name. She crossed it out and told him to proceed.

Squall walked past her and entered the ballroom. In front of him stood a large circular-shaped banquet hall with a cathedral ceiling and a large rectangular section on the opposite far end, giving the room a keyhole shape. The rectangular section was a raised stage and was occupied by a small band of musicians playing waltzes and other orchestral music. In the center of the circular ballroom was a large open space used as a dance floor. Around the perimeter of the room were dozens of tables for people to eat at. Large decorated pillars lined the outside of the circle and hid the two sets of steps that led up to the room's second floor. It was a "C" shape that stopped short where the band was located. More dining tables were located on it but the design also allowed people to stand and look down and view the dance floor. Lastly, the cathedral ceiling of the ballroom arched up and out into a glass dome that provided a breath-taking view of the sky. Even Squall had to admit, only to himself of course, that it was an impressive sight and remarkable work of architecture.

The ballroom was packed with people; couples on the dance floor, people seated at tables with others standing around in groups while waiters and waitresses carried drinks and food around. Squall instantly began to feel a little awkward and out of place and decided to move along the walls, heading off to the right. He wanted to stay in the background until he got his bearings. He grabbed a glass of champagne off one of the serving tables and gulped it down a little quicker than he had meant to. He put that glass down and grabbed another but forced himself pace this one.

Squall made his way over to the stairs and walked up to the second floor. Once there he took note that the second floor was just as packed. Most of the tables were fully occupied as was most of the balcony space giving a view down to the first level. Squall found an open space and took it, leaning against the railing and watching the events playing out below.

He watched for a few minutes then looked to his left and saw Cole walking towards him. Besides him walked an attractive young woman Squall assumed was his date to the ball. She was also dressed in a SeeD Engineering uniform. He also took note of Cole's appearance. His SeeD uniform was clean and freshly pressed and Squall could tell that Cole proudly wore the green engineering patch on his arm.

"What's up Squall? Are you enjoying yourself? This is my date Albry, she's also SeeD Engineering."

Squall looked past Cole and made eye contact with the blonde female SeeD standing behind him. Squall gave a slight nod then turned back to Cole. "Parties aren't really my thing."

Cole laughed. "Being social really isn't your thing. Just try to relax and have a good time. Good seeing ya again."

Cole turned back towards his date and they walked off. Squall stayed on the balcony for a few more minutes then decided to head back down to the first floor. He walked over to one of the pillars and leaned against it, trying not to draw any attention to himself. Squall took a look around the room and spotted Headmaster Kramer and General Crace. They were speaking with the other four Generals in charge of the other Garden MOS designations; Engineering, Medics, Military Police and Pilots. Cid turned and saw Squall standing off by himself and waved him to walk over. Squall walked up to the group and saluted.

"Evening Sir."

The general saluted him back and spoke first. "Congratulations Sgt. Leonhart, I never had any doubt that you would succeed during your exam."

"Being awarded the rank of Sergeant at graduation is very rare Squall, you should be very proud of yourself." Cid added.

"Thank you sir, it's an honor to have received the rank. I look forward to serving Balamb Garden."

General Crace turned to the other Generals. "This SeeD is the first of his kind. He is the only gunblade user in Garden."

The other Generals shook their head approvingly and whispered amongst themselves. This made Squall feel a bit awkward. He didn't like the attention and wished that they wouldn't make such a big deal out of him being the first gunblader. It's not like it made him some sort of super soldier; nor anymore elite than any other SeeD Special Forces.

General Crace took Squall and Cid aside for a moment to speak privately. "Squall, Cid and I have monitored your progress over the years. Don't worry, its nothing bad. Nor are you under any kind of microscope. I had high hopes for Seifer too but I've come to realize that he will never be a SeeD. He's too hard to control. But I'm glad you made it, I really am. I believe you will be a very useful and trust-worthy soldier to me. When the time comes, there's a few things that Cid and I will explain to you."

Squall nodded silently but had no idea what the hell they were going on about_. _

_ What the fuck are they talking about?!_

Squall respected Cid because he was the founder of Garden. And he had the highest magnitude of respect for General Crace because the man was the most skilled warrior to ever serve Balamb Garden. But all this mysterious talk of special purpose was really beginning to get under Squall's skin. But Squall also knew better than to confront either of these two men with his frustrations. After all, he was now a soldier that followed orders. It wasn't his place to question the motives of the Headmaster or the General in command of spec ops.

"Squall my boy, you will make a fine asset to Garden." Cid stated. He patted Squall on the shoulder then walked off into the crowd.

After Cid walked away, General's smile faded and his face suddenly became stoic. He looked around to make sure no else was close by. The he turned back to Squall. "So, what was it like in battle for you? To fight and kill for real for the first time?"

Squall thought for a moment trying to come up with an answer. He had tried not to think about it much because it honestly hadn't felt as righteous and justified as he assumed it would. Squall took no joy or pride in killing, even if it was enemy soldiers. Killing another person was never something to be celebrated. Something to be skilled at? Absolutely, particularly in his line of work. Killing was simply part of the job; one of many parts and tasks for SeeD SF soldiers.

Squall looked back to the General. "I felt honored to fight for Garden but I took no pleasure in killing those soldiers. I don't hate them. That would be an unprofessional and emotional response. It's not like I was some righteous good guy and they were truly evil villains for me to slay. We stood on different sides of a battlefield doing our jobs after all. They had a duty to kill me and it was my duty to kill them. I won and they didn't. That's it."

"Did you feel fear?"

Squall answered with out missing a beat. "Of course. But all humans feel fear. The idea of being fearless is a myth and a fantasy. There's no such thing a fearless. We instead have courage to counter fear."

"Courage is not the absence of fear.."

"...only the mastery of it," Squall finished.

"Excellent Squall."

Crace then became more solemn again. "As for the philosophy of killing, I never enjoyed it either and I'm glad you've realized that early on. And you make a good point about sides. Most of the time there is no right and wrong side, just two different points of view that clash with each other."

"Most of the time sir?"

"Yes, most of the time. But one of the hardest things for someone to learn to do is differentiate between two simple conflicting sides and a true case of good vs. evil."

Squall didn't know what the General was getting at. "Have you come across this type of scenario sir? It sounds fairly unrealistic to me."

"Garden will always want you to do what your contract says, no more, no less. Some of the people running Garden do not care what we do, as long as it makes Garden money."

"Sir, I will follow the orders of this Garden and fight who I'm told to while obeying the international laws that Garden answers to."

"Wonderful. A perfect text book answer. Here's the point I'm trying to make. In any situation we may end up having to kill but our real purpose has always been to serve and protect mankind. It's easy to believe that there's is no good or evil, only different points of view in any given conflict or fight because most of the time this is in fact true. But at some point you will come across a situation where good and evil are clearly defined. Regardless of what Garden may order you to do, I want you to make decisions using your head and your heart. Real evil needs only one thing to achieve victory; and that is for good men to stand back and do nothing to stop it."

The General gave Squall's shoulder a tight squeeze. It seemed to Squall that Crace's mind was suddenly distant and focused on more serious matters. If Squall didn't know better, he would have sworn that General Crace looked worried. And the way he spoke about good and evil…as if he knew some dark force straight out of a story book was coming. After another moment went by the General caught him self zoning out and quickly brought his smile back.

"I'm sorry, you shouldn't think about any of this now. Tonight is meant for celebration. Try not to listen to the rants of Generals and administrators. Enjoy yourself Squall."

With out saying another word, General Crace turned and disappeared into the crowd.

An hour and a half later Squall found himself again leaning against one of the pillars lining the perimeter of the room. He had gotten himself a small meal and had downed his third glass of champagne at this point. The alcohol was starting to take effect now and he found himself loosening up a bit, relaxing a little more than he usually allowed him self to. A waitress came by with another tray of filled champagne glasses. She stopped and gestured to Squall then handed him one of the glasses. Squall was going to protest but figured one more glass wouldn't kill him. He took a few sips then spotted the blonde spikes of Zell's hair coming towards him through the crowd. Squall thought Zell hadn't seen him yet and attempted to dodge him by ducking his head hoping he would walk right by. That hope ended the second Squall heard his name called.

"Yo Squall!"

Squall let an almost inaudible groan out and took another sip of his champagne suddenly wishing it were something much stronger. Zell came running up to Squall waving with a huge grin across his face.

"What's up man? It's good to see you here. Look at us man, we're both bad ass SeeDs now eh? Who knows maybe we can work together on some super secret mission." Seeing no response from Squall, Zell rubbed the back of his head and let out a small chuckle. "Well I'm glad we both made it, I know I'm really looking forward to using my skills and seeing the world." Squall again said nothing and just looked at Zell. Thinking fast Zell wiped his hand off on his pants and stuck it out for Squall to shake. "Put it there man."

Squall looked down at Zell's hand for a moment then looked off to the side and took another sip of his drink. Zell held his hand out another second before catching the drift Squall was sending his way. Zell let out another short chuckle and shook his head. Squall was still Squall and Zell knew that. Zell knew Squall didn't dislike him but just wasn't comfortable enough to open up, be social or even shake hands. This didn't bother Zell in the least.

"Ha! Even as a SeeD, you're still the same old typical Squall. That's what I love about ya brother; you're an oak. They should stand you up somewhere in here as a decoration. See ya around Squall." Zell gave a slight wave then ran off back into the crowd towards a group of girls.

As if on cue, Selphie came out of the crowd and the two almost collided, Zell stopping dead in his tracks just in time. "Oh I'm sorry; I didn't see…oh hey Zell! Do you wanna join the Garden Festival committee and…" Selphie started to ask.

Zell interrupted just as she was about to finish. "Sorry, I…ah… just remembered something! I gotta go. See ya!" Zell stammered. Zell turned and continued his run back towards the group of people by one of the tables.

Selphie put her hands on her hips and shifted her weight to one side. "Hmmmm….." she grunted. _The least he can do is come up with a better lie._

She turned and saw Squall leaning against one of the pillars and thought she'd go ask him. After all, he had helped her before so why not try again? "Squall! Hi!" She ran over to Squall shaking her hands in the air to get his attention.

_Oh here we go..._

Squall slouched his shoulders and let out another groan, this time longer and louder. He hadn't spotted her since they separated back at the stairs and was sort of hoping she would just leave him alone and have a good time on her own.

Squall looked down at his drink.

_Definitely need something stronger..._

Selphie got to Squall and put her hands together near her chest like she was praying and gave Squall the best puppy dog eyes she could muster. "Wanna join the Garden Festival committee? You can help out whenever you have time. Please?"

Although the puppy dog eyes did not affect Squall in the slightest, he did realize she was basically working on this thing by herself and did feel minutely sorry for her. He could say yes to make Selphie feel better then just see if she would forget or get away with doing as little as possible. "Sure Selphie, you seem to be putting a lot of effort into this."

Selphie's eyes doubled in size as a huge smile swallowed up her face. "Really!? Yesss! That's great!" she proclaimed while jumping up and down. "Thank you so much. I know we will be busy with SeeD stuff but let's work hard on the Garden Festival too. Bye!"

Squall watched Selphie run past him and disappear into the crowd. Squall took another sip of his drink and continued to scan the large crowd of people all around him. Then he changed his focus to the dance floor where dozens of couples were currently dancing together. Amongst the many couples were other couples that were either walking onto or off of the dance floor as well as several people moving around by themselves.

Unimpressed with anything he saw, Squall looked up at the ceiling window and fixed his eyes on the full moon and the millions of stars littering the sky. Suddenly he caught sight of what appeared to be a shooting star rocket across the night sky. After it flew past, he moved his eyes back down to the crowd and noticed another person who had been gazing up at the sky and had also seen the shooting star. They appeared to be the only two people in the ballroom who had seen it, like some sort of divine secret only they were meant to know.

The other person was a young woman. She brought her gaze back down and when their eyes connected, a sudden jolt shot through him as if his heart had just been electrocuted. She tilted her head to one side slightly and gave Squall a sweet smile then pointed up towards the sky.

_We both saw that shooting star._

Squall kept his eyes locked on her and quickly deduced that she wasn't a SeeD. Nor did she seem to be with anyone so he guessed she was here by herself, perhaps a potential client. She had a petit but toned build with good definition to her arms and legs. Her skin was a lighter complexion and she had long, straight hair that was raven black in color and reached down to her shoulder blades. In the front she had several short bangs and a few light brown highlights on the sides. Her hair complemented the shape of her face, giving her a cute and innocent look. The streaks of light brown hair really seemed to naturally blend in with her black hair, adding to her beauty. Around her neck was a silver necklace with a silver ring on it. She wore a light cream colored dress with white trim that seemed to almost glow on its own. It was a short halter top design that only reached half way down her thighs. Squall immediately took notice of how the dress seemed to accentuate the curves of her chest, waist and hips, and gave him an excellent view of her long, toned legs. She was hands down, with out a doubt, the single most beautiful woman at the ball. To say that she was gorgeous did her no justice at all.

She smiled for another moment then began to walk over towards Squall. He watched her walk and realized that even the way she moved was beautiful. She seemed to just glide across the floor with class and grace as her hips slightly swayed from side to side in a hypnotic fashion.

Another second later the realization of the situation sunk in and Squall's heart instantly began to pound wildly and panic began to set in.

_Oh shit! She's coming this way! _

The temperature in the room had seemed to have jumped eighty degrees and Squall felt his hands start to sweat.

_Get it together Leonhart, you are a God damn elite killing machine and you're sweating bullets over a girl like some school boy bitch! _

Squall gave himself one last mental slap, hoping it would force him to pull himself together right as she walked up to him. That fraction of concentration was destroyed however, as he had looked into her eyes the second she finished moving. They were strikingly beautiful and colored in a rich chocolate brown.

The girl picked up on the fact that Squall was mesmerized by her eyes and turned a mild shade of red. She quickly smiled towards him again then looked down nervously. She bit the side of her lower lip slightly, and brushed a few hairs back behind her ears.

"Hi..."

Squall, still caught off guard, looked to his right and then his left and then used his free hand to hesitantly point to himself. He still remained unable to speak.

She snorted and laughed slightly, caught off guard my the cute young man's innocent gesture of honest confusion.

"Yes, you. You are by far the best looking guy here. I caught several other girls checking you out. And yet here you are all by yourself. Dance with me?" She had a sweet, soft voice that had a mild Galbadian accent to it.

Squall had heard her question and had even picked up on her accent but his brain was still completely shut down and he simply wasn't able to form a single coherent sentence to say to her. He was still lost in her eyes and the fragrance from her lavender perfume. Instead he took a huge gulp of his champagne, finishing off the entire glass.

The girl picked up on this immediately and cocked one eyebrow up before letting a low, slight giggle escape from her mouth. "Let me guess… You'll only dance with someone you like." She tapped her foot a few times on the ground like she was thinking then stopped as if she had thought of an idea. "Look into my eyes…" She started to chant in a sarcastic hypnotizing voice. "You're going to like me… you're going to like me…did it work?"

Her humor had snapped Squall out of his mental fart and brought him back to reality. This beautiful, funny and wonderful girl wanted to dance with him and Squall knew that. But Squall was a lone wolf. And perhaps in some other life he would have danced with her the whole night and spent the rest of his life with her if she wanted, this was not that life. He didn't want to feel anything anymore and this girl alone had managed to get him to feel more in the last ten seconds than he had in the last ten years. If it had been any other random girl he might have said yes just to be somewhat polite but this girl was already like a drug to Squall. And he knew he'd become addicted if he hung around too long. Coming up with the best lie he could think of, he tried to get out of the situation.

"I can't dance." It was completely untrue; all SeeD SF were required to take both classical ball dance as well as modern dance you would see in night clubs in case a mission required such skill. He put his glass down and started to step back from her.

She cocked her head to the right and her left eyebrow up in disbelief. "You'll be fine. Come on. I can't be on the dance floor alone."

With out another second of hesitation she stepped forward and grabbed Squall's hand then turned and started walking out onto the dance floor, dragging him behind her. Squall could have easily resisted but found him self letting her have her way. The part of Squall that really wanted to dance with her didn't care what the rest of him thought.

Over on the side Zell was finishing his third hotdog when he happened to look over and see Squall getting dragged out onto the dance floor. He cracked a slight grin.

_If that isn't proof that karma exists, I don't know what it is. _

She weaved pack and forth around other couples with Squall in tow right behind her. As she moved, her hair moved back and forth, revealing a tattoo she had on her back. A pair of white angel wings with black outline were paired together in the upper center of her back in between her shoulder blades. Squall couldn't help himself, he thought that they looked incredibly sexy on her and only added to her beauty. Squall might have been Squall but he was still a male who was seventeen years old. This meant he checked out women just like every other guy his age.

A few seconds later they reached the spot she wanted and she stopped. However, as she did Squall began to realize what he had just allowed to happen and started to panic again. Quickly he tried to think of a way out of it.

_Just dance like shit and she'll just let you go._

She faced him, taking his hands and placing one on her hip and the other in her hand which she held out. Then she placed her hand on his shoulder and started to lead them. Squall heard the song that started up and immediately knew what it was. _Waltz for the Moon, _Squall thought. He knew this song from dance class and knew the steps to it as well. As a matter of fact, he was a pro at it. But he knew this wasn't the time to prove it.

A few steps into the waltz, Squall pushed into the girl too much and caused her to take a few steps back and out of sync stopping them both. She didn't say anything and instead just resumed the proper position and continued to dance. A few steps later Squall tried again during a turn and spin move. Keeping his hold on one of her hands, he turned his body away from her as she did the same. However he purposefully spun back with too much force and crashed into her. She had to take a step to keep herself on her feet although in reality Squall had kept a grip on her the whole time to make sure he wouldn't knock her down. She stepped back and threw her arms down in frustration then gave Squall an angry look. Squall took this as his cue to exit and turned to leave. His eyes popped wide open though when he felt her hands grab his and pull him back to her. She smiled and shook it off then once again resumed her proper waltz stance with him. Squall saw another couple close by and decided to crash into them. Suddenly taking the lead he guided her over too far and crashed into another couple. The four stopped and looked at each other for a second. The other couple gave Squall a nasty look; Squall recognized the guy but couldn't think of his name. He knew he had just graduated as a SeeD MP. Before Squall could say anything, his dance partner stepped forward.

"What are you looking at?"

The couple gave her a scornful look for a second then turned and walked off in the other direction. Squall turned to the girl who gave him a suspicious grin then leaned in real close to whisper in Squall's ear.

"I know you SeeD SF can dance so cut the shit okay?" She pulled back and looked him right in the eyes then looked over at the black SF patch on his sleeve.

Squall's blood ran cold and his face almost went pale. He'd been caught red-handed.

"Okay," he answered quietly.

Her warm smile returned and she laughed. "Well then, shall we start again?"

Squall nodded and took her into his arms, placing his hands in the proper positions. Letting the beat of the music fill his head again, he picked right up with the beat and began to lead her perfectly. Together they spun, turned, glided and waltzed the rest of the steps easily and flawlessly. As the song neared its end the lights in the room began to dim until the room was nearly dark. The fast, energetic music of the waltz slowly faded out and was replaced by a slow song that picked up. Immediately the crowds moved and started to change. Some couples left the floor while others walked on to it. In the middle of the dance floor though stood Squall and his mystery girl looking into each others eyes. He saw a longing in her eyes the second the music started up, as if this song really meant something to her. He knew the name of it was _Eyes On Me_ but he couldn't remember who the singer was because it was on older song. He could tell that she wanted to dance to this song but didn't say anything, almost like she wanted him to ask her but wasn't going to force the issue. With out thinking he heard him self speaking.

"I owe you another dance. Would you dance with me again?"

She didn't say anything but smiled up at him and walked in real close to Squall. Squall gently wrapped both his arms around her waist, placing them together right at the very bottom of her back. She reached up and wrapped both arms up over his shoulders and brought them together around the back of his neck then leaned into him, placing her head on his right side. Squall slowly and softly began to lead them in a circle. For a few moments neither one said anything, they simply took in the presence of the other. He inhaled the scent of her hair and her lavender perfume and felt her breathe softly into his neck. Squall Leonhart knew right then that he'd never known true peace until this exact moment. The sound of her soft, angelic voice brought him out from his thoughts.

"Thank you for dancing with me. I know I was a bit of a pain and I'm sorry for dragging you out here. But I appreciate you dancing with me, especially during this song. It sort of means a lot to me."

"I'm honored that you asked me. And I'm sorry for acting like I couldn't dance."

Squall felt her pull away for a moment and looked down only to see her looking back up at him. He smiled softly and continued to lead them gently in a circle. As the slow dance came to the end, the room suddenly lit up with the lights of different colors as fire works exploded up above the outside of the of the ballroom. Squall looked up for a moment and watched them while his mystery girl continued to look up at him. Suddenly she saw a friend of hers waving her over and pointing to the Headmaster of the Garden who was standing off by himself. She squeezed Squall's shoulder to get his attention and he looked back down to her.

"I have to go. Thank you for this, I will never forget it."

Squall watched her walk off towards the crowd and meet up with some male who was slightly overweight. The two of them walked off and disappeared into the crowd. Squall snapped out of it and realized he was still standing out in the middle of a dance floor with couples all around him. Looking around quickly he spotted the entrance to a small balcony and made his way towards it.

When he got outside he noticed that the stone balcony was actually decent sized with plants and shrubs lining it for decoration. He was surprised but pleased that it was completely vacant and took in the peaceful silence of the night away from the music and chatter of the ballroom.

Squall began to think about the girl he had just danced with. He knew that it had only been two dances but it had meant something to him and he hated that. She had walked off and just like that she was gone. He couldn't help but feel a slight sting from the experience, one that Squall was all too familiar with. A sting that he had felt many times during his life and had shaped him into the man he was today. He had pushed away every potential friend in his life because he didn't want anyone getting to close to him. A long time ago he had lost someone very important to him, the closest thing to a family member he'd ever had. He could only remember pieces or fragments of memories of his early childhood but they were vague and foggy. But he was fairly certain he remembered a sister of some sort that was with him a long time ago. But he always lost the people close to him so he had decided to close up for good. If he was going to get into this line of business then it was probably better to stay a loner anyway. Squall wasn't as naive as Seifer; he knew that an elite mercenary, no matter how skilled, dodged death by a hair on a regular basis. Squall knew that things like love could never be a part of his life. He was almost certain that there was to be absolutely no happily ever after for him in his own story.

Squall's GF enhanced instincts kicked in suddenly and he felt a presence behind him. He didn't bother to turn around because he recognized the scent of strawberries and cream. The voice of Quistis Trepe filled his ears a moment later.

"You really are an excellent student. Even that dance was perfect."

Squall waited a few seconds to see if she was done speaking then sighed lightly. "Thank you."

Quistis continued to stand with her arms crossed waiting for him to say something else. Squall picked up on this and became a bit annoyed."Yes?"

Quistis let her hands fall to her sides and gave Squall her own irritated look. "So you can dance with someone you don't even know but you can't stand being around me?"

Squall thought he heard what he believed to be jealousy in her tone. "Whatever. You're an instructor and I'm your student; was your student. It's kind of awkward when you don't say anything. And that girl back in there wasn't my instructor."

Quistis chuckled slightly and shook her head. "Well I suppose that is true. Besides, I was the same way when I was still a cadet. Now, the reason I came out here was to give you an order. You and I are to go to the secret area together. It's where students go after curfew to talk or fool around. It's inside the training center in the back of the live combat area. We'll have to watch out for monsters of course."

One of Squall's eyebrows shot up and he gave her a suspicious look. "What do you want to do there? Are we going there to tell everyone they're violating curfew? If that's the case just forget it. That's something we can leave for SeeD MPs and GFAs. Let the Disciplinary Committee handle it."

Quistis rolled her eyes and waved off Squall's line of thought. "No Squall you're missing the point. Go get changed and meet me by the entrance to the training center. Think of this as my one last order as your instructor."

"Yes ma'am."

With out either one saying anything else, Squall walked off of the balcony and back into ballroom, leaving Quistis to herself. She leaned against the stone railing and took a single deep breath. She was still seriously pissed off and disappointed from her hearing and just needed someone to talk to. She hoped Squall would at least let her vent to him.

* * *

**NOTES**

So I definitely made some changes to this scene to make it bigger and more important. In the game the ball is already one of the most important scenes because Squall and Rinoa meet but I wanted to try and make it even bigger. I also had to make sure General Crace made an appearance with some words of wisdom since he's a bit of a role model of sorts to Squall. Crace will play a huge part later on in making sure Squall grows to be a strong leader.

You have probably noticed that I have slightly altered Squall's personality for this story. The Squall in my story is a bit more social and has more wit to him than the one in the game. I felt that the Squall from the game was too far removed and introverted to be realistic so I've made him a little more like a normal 17 year old hormonal male while still preserving most of that stoic, lone wolf nature that Squall has.

Finally, on to our meeting of Rinoa and Squall. You will notice that I changed her appearance a little to make her seem more like a young woman than a teenage girl. I gave her a tattoo because I pictured it on her in my mind and it really does give her that extra kick of sexiness that would drive guys wild. I'll give you a tiny spoiler here and say that she will not be the only main character to have a tattoo. Lastly, I also had them slow dance to Eyes On Me because I wanted to have them spend a little more time together to make their connection stronger.


	9. Confessions

**Chapter 9**

**Confessions**

Saturday, May 7th, 2217NE

11:32pm

Squall opened the door to his apartment and walked in. As he did, he could still faintly hear the sounds of music emanating from the Garden's Ballroom coming in through his window. Sitting down on his bed, Squall dropped his head into his hands and began to recapitulate all of tonight's events. Running into Seifer had been a minor annoyance but he'd gotten over it quickly enough. Although there was something in Seifer's tone that told Squall that he hadn't been kidding about anything he'd said. Squall had a feeling that he and Seifer may actually cross blades for real someday. If that were the case, Squall would do what had to be done. And if that meant striking Seifer down and killing him...so be it.

As Squall took his SeeD jacket off he got another whiff of the lavender perfume that girl he danced with had been wearing. It must have gotten on his uniform when they danced. He just couldn't seem to get her out of his mind either. Squall would be lying to himself if he made the statement that he hadn't felt anything.

_Why do I care so much? This isn't like me..._

Squall stood up and let out a deep breath. "It's not like you're ever going to see her again Leonhart so get over it already," said out loud to himself.

Having thought enough about pointless topics, Squall changed out the remaining articles of the formal outfit and neatly hung it up before putting it away in his closet. Then he grabbed a pair of blue jeans, his black combat boots and plain dark green t-shirt and threw them all on. Next he walked over to his office to the weapons safe. He grabbed Revolver and equipped it after putting on his service rig and waist holster in case he needed it in the training center. Now that he was a SeeD he was permitted to carry weapons on his persons at all times and was half expected to do so. He grabbed six rounds and loaded Revolver before grabbing a speed loader that held six more. Squall then sheathed his weapon and stowed the extra rounds on his belt pouch. Lastly, he grabbed his SeeD ID and left the apartment and made his way to the elevators.

_This better be important Quistis..._

Squall was more than a little annoyed by his former instructor's final request. He would have preferred to have gone straight to bed to catch up on sleep then wake up early tomorrow and hit the gym.

A few minutes later he entered the main hall and made his way over to the training center. He spotted Quistis leaning up against the wall and made his way over to her. She was wearing jeans with a red top and had her whip attached to her belt. She heard his foot steps and turned to him.

"Hey Squall, thanks for meeting me here. I was just wondering if you've ever fought a T-Rexuar in the live combat area since thats where the secret area is located."

"Yes I have but not at Garden. I fought one in the Saltus Woods once but it was too tough for me to kill so I had to run from it."

"Well it probably wasn't the best of ideas to fight one alone but the reason I bring it up is that the live combat area has a small population of them. It's the toughest thing we would have to face in there. If we do encounter one the two of us should be able to take it down if we work together."

Squall nodded. "I'll keep that in mind."

The two turned and made there way down the hall of the training center, passing it's gym, classrooms and shooting range along the way. The live combat area was the last set of double doors where the hallway came to a stop. Through them was another hallway with a guard booth to the right. SeeDs and senior year cadets were permitted to come and go as they please but younger cadets had to have SeeD escorts with them. The SeeD MP on duty looked up at Squall and Quistis who both showed him their IDs. He waved them by then went back to his paperwork.

They walked a few more yards down before reaching a sturdy looking door that opened and led into the entry area. The combat area itself was outside and consisted of several hundred square yards of wooded grounds that was completely fenced off. The area they stood in was the last "safe spot" before heading into the actual game area. It was a triangular shaped open clearing that was completely fenced off. To Squall's left and right where two solid looking door's that led out to the game area. Garden used it as a fail safe area that prevented any of the monster species from making out of the game area and into Garden itself.

Squall looked around for a moment then turned back to Quistis. "Which door should we take Instructor?"

Quistis thought for a moment then pointed to the left door. "The left passageway is a little closer to the secret area so we should take that one."

Squall walked over to the left door and pressed the button. A second later the pressurized door hissed then opened up to reveal the woods beyond it. Squall trained here on a semi-regular basis to keep up his skill at fighting monster species but didn't know its paths by heart.

The moment the two of them had made it completely through the doors swung shut behind them. Quistis pointed to a path ahead and they started to walk towards it. Not more then twenty or thirty steps later Squall heard a rustle of the bushes about ten feet ahead of him. Quistis stood to his left and instinctively unlatched her whip. Squall gave her a hold sign then pulled out Revolver and started making his way towards the group of bushes. Squall took a few more steps, Quistis remaining several steps behind him, and got almost to the edge of the path when a shriek came from behind them. Off to the left behind Quistis two Geezards jumped out of the bushes and launched themselves at her. The Geezard was a monster species that traveled in packs and appeared similar to a snake with but with a human-like head and two front limbs to aid in movement. Both SeeDs swung around to face them but Squall was knocked to the ground by a third Geezard, the one that had made the bushes rustle. He lost his grip on his gunblade and it flew several feet in front of him. It had been a trap and they had walked right into it.

Quistis managed to strike one of the monsters with her whip, ripping a nice long slice of flesh off it. The second one managed to get close enough to Quistis and jumped up on her, sending her crashing to the ground. She managed to get her hands up under its neck and struggled to keep it from bringing its jaws down on her.

Meanwhile the third Geezard jumped at Squall again but hadn't been quick enough. Squall rolled on to his back and kicked the Geezard in the face as hard as he could with both of his boots. It flew back and landed on its side, stunned from the attack. Squall looked over at Quistis struggling and focused his hand out towards her attacker. A moment later a small light green light formed in his hand and spewed a bolt of lightning out from it. The bolt raced across the path and stuck the Geezard on the side, picking it up and throwing it back into the bushes, leaving nothing but a fried corpse. Quistis raced to her feet and prepped the whip for another attack as the second Geezard launched itself out at her again. This time Quistis was prepared and lashed the whip across its face, cutting it almost clean off. The monster flew by her and hit the ground dead.

Squall rolled over to Revolver and scooped it up just as the third Geezard lunged for his throat. Squall swung the blade horizontally and cut the top portion of its head completely off. The body hit the ground with a thud and twitched slightly while its blood pooled around it.

Squall and Quistis caught their breath then checked them selves for injuries. Quistis didn't have a scrape on her and Squall only had two minor cuts on his arm. Quistis cast a low level cure spell on his arm and the cuts quickly stopped bleeding and healed up almost completely.

"Damned Geezards, I really don't like them," Squall commented.

"They're pack monsters. They hunt in small groups using stealth and speed to ambush their prey. Come on, let's keep moving."

Squall nodded and followed Quistis down the path. They kept their guard up and their weapons ready as they progressed through the woods. The path twisted several times and had several fallen trees they had to climb over before finally coming to a small path that branched out from the main one they were on. Surprisingly enough, they had not been attacked nor had they even seen another monster since the Geezard attack.

Quistis pointed to the path and Squall observed that it led off to a small hole in the wall that had light coming out of it. They quickly made their way over to it and went through. Directly inside of it was a small maintenance craw space and a ladder that went up. Squall went first followed by Quistis. When he got to the top he saw that he was standing on a large balcony area that looked back over the woods below towards. The balcony also looked back towards Garden, giving viewers a breath-taking view of it. The lights from Garden's crown lit up with a silver-white glow, giving the building a sort of divine appearance to it. To his left and right were other couples holding hands and watching the stars or making out. Squall did his best to ignore them as Quistis finally made it up and stood next to Squall. She saw the other couples and simply let out a small giggle then shook her head. One of the couples saw Quistis and must have recognized her because they took off past them and back down the ladder.

Quistis nodded for Squall to follow her to the opposite side of the balcony so the other couple could have more privacy and couldn't hear Squall or Quistis talking. Quistis got to the railing and leaned against it, Squall taking a place to her left.

"I haven't been up here for awhile," Quistis said.

"I didn't think you were the type to break rules."

"I'm not a complete goody-goody."

For the next few minutes they simply stood there admiring the view. Squall wasn't one for romantic or sentimental things but even he had to admit, just to himself, that the view was breath taking. And it was made even better by the perfectly crystal clear night sky above Garden. Quistis let out a frustrated sigh then shook her head slightly.

"What time is it?"

Squall looked down at his watch and saw that it read 12:07. "It's after midnight."

Quistis sighed again, this time drawing it out. This caught Squall attention and he looked over at her. He was surprised to see that she looked like she was on the verge of tears.

"Oh well…" She stood up straight, fighting back the tears. "I, Quistis Trepe, am no longer an instructor as of now! Earlier in the week I had an official hearing with a review board that determined I was not fit to be an instructor anymore."

Squall was stunned. "Why not!?"

"Because I wasn't able to control Seifer and keep him in line. He was arrested earlier and used it as a reason to label me as a failed instructor. He's in the brig now while they finish up making his expulsion final. So from now on I'm back to just being SeeD SF, just like you. You don't have to call me Instructor anymore. Who knows, we may even work together someday."

Squall could tell Quistis was heart broken over it and didn't think it was fair that she get canned simply because Seifer was a useless lump of shit. But he also knew there wasn't anything that could be done. Not knowing what to say, he said the first thing that came to mind.

"Oh really?"

Quistis looked a little stunned. "Is that all you are going to say?"

Squall looked over at her again then back out towards Garden. "It's not fair that you go down over Seifer but if that's how it was decided, you have to abide by it. So you might as well suck it up and get over it."

Quistis was feeling pretty bad right about now and Squall wasn't helping too much. She decided to see if she could get any type of reaction out of him.

"They told me that I had failed as an Instructor and didn't possess the leadership qualities necessary to control a student like Seifer. I had managed to graduate as a SeeD by the age of fifteen and got my Instructors license not too long after that."

Squall had heard enough. He didn't know how to deal with this kind of situation and preferred to stay clear of it and other people's problems altogether. He turned away from her and looked off in distance while Quistis continued to vent to him.

"I don't know where I went wrong. I mean I did my best and..." She caught Squall looking away from her and couldn't believe it. "Are you even listening to me Squall?"

Squall let out a deep breath and shook his head slightly. "Are you done yet?" he turned his back to Garden and leaned against the railing. "Look, I don't want to talk about it. I mean what am I supposed to say about other people's problems?"

"I'm not asking you to say anything. I just want you to listen. I thought I could bring you up here and vent to you. I mean I always considered you not just a student but a friend too and I had thought that maybe one day we…"

"Stop Quistis. I'm not what you think and I'm not what you're looking for ok."

"I've come to realize that but I thought I could still at least just vent my frustrations to you. All you would have to do is listen."

Squall spun to face Quistis and got real close to her. "Then go to talk a God damn wall ok!" It had come out a bit harsher than he'd meant.

Quistis took a step back as if Squall had just stabbed her through the heart. Letting her emotions and rage boil over she lashed out and slapped Squall across the face. Squall stood stunned for a moment then slowly turned his eyes back to Quistis. He knew he had probably deserved that one.

"Being cold and pushing others away doesn't make you strong or honorable Squall. It only hurts other people and makes you look like an ass. I only asked you up here because I thought that maybe you were someone I could talk to but I guess I was wrong. You can go now, sorry for taking up your precious fucking time!"

Squall didn't say anything back; he only nodded then turned and walked away, leaving Quistis to her thoughts. As Squall got to the ladder, he heard Quistis' voice again.

"Squall, aren't there ever times when you want to share your feelings with someone? Have you really never opened up to anyone, not even once?"

Squall thought for a moment before answering. "There was someone, a long time ago I think. But everyone has to take care of themselves Quistis. That's the reality of this world." Without saying anything else he made his way down the ladder and out of sight.

"Maybe they are right. Maybe I really don't have any leadership qualities," Not able to hold the tears back anymore, they fell from her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. All she could do was stare blankly out at Garden.

Squall made his way back down the ladder and back out to the path. He started walking back the way he came when he thought he heard a scream come from the other direction. Stopping dead in his tracks, he turned and listened, using his enhanced hearing to focus on any voices.

"Help! Somebody help me please!" a voice shouted.

There was no mistake now and Squall started to pick up speed, running in the other direction. Squall knew he might be cold hearted and a prick sometimes but he wasn't about to let someone innocent get hurt.

"Squall, where are you running off to?"

Squall stopped again and turned to see Quistis come back onto the path. "Quistis, someone is in trouble! Let's go!"

Not having anymore time to say anything else, Squall turned and went back to running towards the voice.

"Wait, what's happening!?" Quistis turned and ran after Squall. She caught up with him and they sprinted several more yards before hearing a loud monster-like shriek come from right around the next bend of the path. It caused them both to stop moving and look at each other. They each nodded then pulled their weapons before crouching down and stealthily making their way over. They turned the corner and stopped dead in their tracks. Before them stood a giant wasp-like creature and three Raldos surrounding a woman who was trying to take cover between two fallen trees.

"What the hell is that flying thing and what is it doing with those Raldos?"

Quistis didn't recognize the creature. "I don't know. My guess is that its a mutant; a boss monster of some sort, giving commands to those Raldos."

The girl's eyes darted around frantically for a method of escape or someone who could help. By chance her eyes connected with Squall's and he recognized her as the girl he saw in the Infirmary the other day.

"Squall! Quisty! Watch out!" she shouted.

"How does she know us?" Quistis asked.

"We can ask her afterwards."

They started to make their way over when one of the Raldos turned and roared, causing the others to turn. The Raldos spread out and started to slowly make their way towards them, growling as they did. Drool spilled from their mouths as they showed their razor sharp teeth. The wasp-thing continued to hover but didn't advance towards the two SeeDs. It stayed safely behind the cover of the Raldos. The woman continued to hide behind the trees, safe for the moment having lost the attention of her attackers.

Quistis nodded to Squall and they spread apart about ten feet. Squall took notice of the flying creature and whispered to Quistis. "It seems to be watching us, as if it's measuring us up."

"Probably wants to see how we do against the Raldos...which is pretty damn smart for a monster."

"Okay we both put up protect spells then I'm going to use earth magic against it. When I do, start pelting the Raldos with fire magic. Then we rush in for the kills."

"Got it."

They both focused in on their GF enhanced magic and cast protect spells then simply stood in defensive positions. While the Raldos inched closer Quistis was charging her fire spells while Squall concentrated his earth magic on a large clump of rock off to his left. The Raldos were within ten yards of them now when the wasp-creature moved close enough for Squall to accurately nail it.

"Now!"

Squall brought his hand forward with tremendous speed, pointing it directly at the flying monster. A tenth of a second later the rock to his left flew off the ground and soared through the air with enough speed that it almost appeared to be a blur. The boss monster hadn't had enough time to react and was just starting to turn when the rock hit its mark, striking the creature center mass. It flew back and out of the air, crashing into a grouping of trees thirty yards back.

Quistis immediately started shooting off balls of fire with both of her hands, one then the other like a human anti-aircraft gun. The fireballs exploded all around the monsters, forcing them to cover themselves and back off. Her GF enhanced strength and stamina enabled her to fire off twenty shots before she began to tire. The shots caused one of the Raldos to drop but only stunned the other two, both of which began to advance again once the barrage of fireballs stopped.

Seeing Quistis had dropped to one knee in exhaustion, Squall charged forward, Revolver held high. The Raldos charged back at him, one directly at him, the other towards Quistis. Squall leaped into the air and brought his gunblade down upon his attacker's head. As he sliced through, he pulled the trigger of his weapon twice. The first blew a large gash into its head which was blown off a moment later by the second charge. It fell to the ground and twitched before going still. Squall turned and saw the other barreling down at Quistis who prepared her whip to strike. Squall could see her still breathing heavy and threw his hand out, launching a wind spell. It picked the charging Raldo up off the ground and tossed him clear over Quistis into some bushes behind her.

Squall started to walk over to her when he was struck from the side by the third Raldo that had gotten back up to its feet. The attack flung Squall twenty feet back into a tree, smacking it with enough force to kill any normal human. It was only his GF MEIJI particle treatment and the protect spell that kept him from breaking his back in two. He struggled to get back up to his feet but did so just in time to dodge a swipe from the Raldo. Squall rolled behind it and flipped up to his feet then swung Revolver right to left across the monster's back. It screamed in pain and fell to both knees. Squall stepped in with his weapon raised to deliver a finishing blow but the Raldo suddenly turned with a second wind and drove its head into Squall's chest. Squall flew back for a second time, his head smacking the ground as he landed. Revolver flew out of his hands, landing a few feet behind him. The Raldo screamed in rage then charged Squall, ready to kill its prey. It jumped in the air poised to finish Squall but was blown back by a bolt of lightning.

Quistis ran forward and struck the Raldo again, this time casting a continuous stream of lightning that continued to cook the Raldo until it fell to the ground dead and smoking. Quistis had dropped her guard and started to walk to Squall when the final Raldo crashed through the bushes towards her. Her timing off, Quistis tried to spin but lost her footing and fell to her back. She didn't have the time to bring up her guard and her protect spell had worn off from casting the lightning and fire spells. The Raldo lowered its head for the strike.

Squall reached out for Revolver and launched it. The gunblade sailed though the air and caught the monster square in the chest, cleaving the heart in two. It flew back and landed in a limp heap. Squall got to his feet and walked over to Quistis and helped her up then walked over to the Raldo and ripped Revolver out of it.

"Good throw."

"Thanks." Squall was really glad he'd learned to throw his gunblade. The skill was becoming more and more useful.

They turned and started moving to the woman hiding between the two trees. They were determined to find out who she was and how she knew them. Squall thought she looked scarred but uninjured.

"Hey, are you-"

The tree line above her exploded and the wasp-thing flew through, still hovering in the air. It was badly cut up in the face and had a decent sized bleeding hole in its chest but it appeared too enraged to care. It howled in anger then started pelting Squall and Quistis with fire magic. Both SeeDs broke and ran in opposite directions to take cover behind the trees. It switched to lightning spells, shooting out bolts of lightning as it chased both of them around from above.

Squall saw Quistis and waved his hands up in the air to get her attention. "Quistis, you have to put it on the ground! I'll get its attention then you take one of the wings off from behind it."

Quistis nodded and Squall made his move. He dashed out from a grouping of bushes into the clearing of the path and fired off several fire spells hitting the wasp-thing on the side. It turned to Squall and gave him a look of pure hatred and death, a message Squall understood immediately. It started to close in on him and raised one of its claws for another magical attack. Squall looked past it and saw Quistis line up directly behind it at the edge of the tree line. He gave her a nod and she rushed out, sprinting as fast as she could. With her GF enhancements, she ran incredibly fast and jumped inhumanly high into the air, whip at the ready. The creature had just started to turn when Quistis lashed her whip out, catching the right wing and cleaving it completely off with surgical precision. It screamed in pain as it fell to the ground causing a tremendous shake.

Squall didn't waste any time and rushed in at the boss monster for a final blow. With the blade pointed down he jumped at the wasp-thing and ran Revolver straight through its chest with both hands. It yelped in agony and rage and managed to swipe Squall across the chest with its claw before Squall pulled the trigger of his gunblade. The first blast made the stab wound bigger and Squall kept pulling the trigger until the weapon ran dry. Pieces of flesh and spurts of blood exploded out, covering Squall and even managing to spray Quistis. The wasp-thing shrieked one final time then became still and silent.

Squall drew the gunblade free of the thing then collapsed to one knee. Quistis rushed over to him helped him off to the side where the girl had been hiding. She came out from behind the trees and started to walk over to them when all three heard voices coming from further down the path. Squall looked up to see three SeeD MPs armed with M-4's come into view followed by two strangely dressed males. Quistis helped Squall up to his feet and together they walked over to the group.

One of the SeeD MPs walked up to Squall and Quistis while the other two checked the bodies of the fallen Raldos and the creature, putting a few rounds into them just to make sure they stayed down.

"I'm Sgt. Sekura, we heard the fighting and got a report of SeeDs fighting an unknown boss monster."

Squall and Quistis both saluted the higher ranking officer. "I'm Lt. Trepe and this is Sgt. Leonhart. That woman was attacked by the Raldos and that boss and we came to her aid. I'm ok but he could use a medic."

"Right away." He turned back to the other two SeeD MPs who were making their way over to them. "Harris, get on the com and get me a medic out to this sector stat!"

"Yes sir!" He turned and got on his radio to make the call.

Sgt. Sekura turned back to Squall and cast a cure spell on him to help with the wound. It managed to dull some of the pain and slow the bleeding but it wasn't enough to heal it.

"It should help a little bit until the medic arrives. I am going to check out the body of that thing you guys killed so I can properly document it. Stay here until that medic shows up." He nodded to both of them then walked off towards the body of the wasp creature.

Squall and Quistis turned their attention to the woman who was being checked out by the two oddly dressed SeeDs. Squall knew for certain that they were SeeD Special Forces because they wore the same type of combat gear and uniforms that they used at this Garden. But the coloring and arrangement of the uniform and gear was different. Their outfits were colored white and silver with silver head bands and tan-colored chest and shoulder armor. They were both armed with the same weapons too; a shortened, straight katana blade slung on their backs and MP-7 machine pistols on their hips as sidearms.

"It is not safe here. Please, we must go now," one of the SeeDs said to the woman.

"Alright." She seemed to be in a daze or shock from having been attacked and let one of the SeeDs escort her by the arm.

The other SeeD walked over to Squall and Quistis to address them. "Thank you for saving her. You have our gratitude."

"Who is she?" Squall asked.

"And how does she know us?" Quistis added.

"There is no time to explain things now. We must get her back."

As they walked away Squall caught a whiff of the girl's perfume. _Mint, where do I recognize that scent from?_ It brought him back to the time period before he had come to Garden but he couldn't clearly remember anything regarding mint.

The three of them walked off down the path and passed the SeeD Medic and two more SeeD MPs as they ran by them. A few seconds later they disappeared out of view.

"Who was that and what where they talking about?" Quistis asked.

Squall shook his head, "I don't know."

The medic dropped his things and told Squall to take his shirt off. Squall obliged and carefully removed the blood stained shirt. The medic handed Squall a healing potion to drink to help jump start the healing process internally while giving his immune system a quick boost. Quistis raised an eyebrow and couldn't help but notice Squall's toned upper body. Squall looked over at her and caught Quistis looking. She turned red and quickly tried to save face by calling the Sargent over.

"Sargent, do you know who those two SeeDs were or who that woman was?" Quistis asked.

"No I don't. I was at the guard house by the entrance with the other two MPs when the two SeeDs in the light-colored outfits showed up asking if we had seen that woman they took with them. They said they were special agents from another Garden. I told them we hadn't and not long after that we heard the fight off in the distance. Then we got a report of a monster fighting a group of SeeDs." Sgt. Sekura turned back to the medic to get his attention. "How's he doing?"

"He'll be fine. I've cleaned out the wound and gave him some bandages and cream for after his shower. He won't need stitches though because the magic and the medicine did its job."

"Sounds good. Hows about we get out of here for now? Those things are dead but there are plenty of monsters still crawling around here." Sgt. Sekura turned his attention to the other MPs that were watching the perimeter. "Pack it up boys, we are leaving."

A few minutes later Squall and Quistis quietly made their way down the hall of the Training Center towards the Main Hall. When they got there Quistis turned to Squall to address him.

"Look Squall, I'm sorry I hit you back there. It was unprofessional and uncalled for."

"Don't worry about Quistis; I... had that one coming."

"Look I know you don't open up to people and I guess it was my fault for dragging you out there just to vent to you when I know you didn't want to hear it. I guess...I just thought I could trust you with my feelings. But I know better now and I won't bother you with that stuff anymore."

She had said it blankly with out any kind of angry or disappointed undertone but Squall suspected that she was still upset. The truth was he hadn't really meant to be so cruel but just didn't know how to deal with other peoples problems. He never knew what to say or how to act.

Quistis turned to leave but stopped and turned around again. "Squall, it's not like everyone can get by on their own you know. Humans weren't built to be solitary creatures. You need people in your life to be your friends, family and even lovers. At some point, you're going to have to realize that."

Saying nothing more, she abruptly turned and walked off, leaving Squall alone to his thoughts.

"Says who?" Squall whispered. But then he suddenly remembered that Ma Dintch had basically said the same thing to him.

_ They don't know what they are talking about._

Squall made his way back to the entrance of the dorms and found Zell hanging out in the connecting hallway. When he saw Squall, he immediately ran over to him.

"Hey Squall I've been looking all over for ya. Where the hell have you…" Zell trailed off when took notice of Squall torn and bloody shirt and jeans. He had his gunblade slung over his back and looked like he had just crawled through a mud pit while fighting off a group of T-Rexuars.

"Dude, what the fuck happen to you?"

Squall waved his hand like he didn't want to talk about it. "Long story Zell, what do you want?"

"I saw ya dancing with that girl dude, she was hot! Tell me you got her number."

Squall let out a long frustrated sigh and shook his head. "Actually I danced with her for two songs and then she had to leave. I don't even know her name." Normally he would have told Zell to shut up and mind his own business but tonight he found it easier to just tell Zell what he wanted to know. And even though he wasn't going to admit it to anyone, not even himself, he still hadn't been able to stop thinking about that girl.

"That's too bad brotha. But maybe you'll see her again someday."

"Doubtful." Squall retorted.

"Well do you mind if I walk with ya since we are both going to the same floor."

"Whatever."

Squall and Zell walked back up to their rooms without saying another word to each other. Zell could see that Squall was thinking about something and guessed that it might have something to do with the girl he had danced with tonight. When they got to Squall's apartment, Zell stopped him before he went in.

"Ya know Squall, its ok if you liked that girl tonight. It doesn't make you any less fierce or strong. She did have a great body and a nice smile."

Squall answered before he could stop himself. "Yes she did." He looked up to see Zell nodding his head in an approving manor with a big dumb grin plastered across his face.

"Night Zell." Squall turned and walked into his apartment shutting the door behind him. He heard Zell laugh as he strolled off down towards his own apartment.

After undressing, taking a long shower and finally redressing his wounds, Squall climbed into bed and tried his best to fall asleep. But despite his best efforts, he couldn't get what happened in the Training Center out of his mind. He had to figure out who that girl was and how she knew not only him but Quistis as well. And who were those strangely dressed SeeDs. Squall couldn't place his finger on it but he felt like something big was getting ready to happen and he would be involved somehow. With all the strange things that had happened to him in the last few days, there wasn't too much that would have surprised him at this point.

Squall continued to toss and turn for a while, unable to sleep with all these matters occupying his mind. It wasn't until he began to think of the girl from the dance that his mind started to relax. He couldn't get the image of her smile and her eyes out of his head. And within minutes though, he fell into a peaceful slumber, the image of her still on his mind.

* * *

**NOTES**

No big notes for this chapter. I hope you liked the fight with the monsters. I'm leaning more towards fights that are shorter but more intense so it's more realistic. Although there will be some longer ones too.


	10. Operation Reforestation

**Chapter 10**

**Operation Reforestation**

Monday, May 9th, 2217NE

5:30am

"Hello?" Squall muttered groggily. He had been sleeping pretty soundly when the ring of his phone going off caused his mind to kick into consciousness.

"Sgt Leonhart, this is Garden Command."

A spike of adrenaline shot through Squall and he shot up in bed, instantly awake and at full attention.

"This is Sgt Leonhart. Proceed sir."

"You've been selected for a mission. Report to Room Seven in the Command Center for the mission briefing. Arrive promptly at 0600 hours."

The click of the line going dead reverberated through Squall's ears. Slowly putting the phone down, he let the call sink in.

_My first mission. Didn't have long to wait did I?_

Not wasting any time, Squall immediately jumped out of bed and quickly got dressed, putting on his SeeD uniform with black SF patch. Then he left the apartment and made his way down to the Main Hall. Once there, he stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for the 26th floor. He had the elevator all to himself and used the ride up to take several deep breaths. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't a little bit nervous. After all, not only would this be his first mission as a SeeD, he'd more than likely be leading the mission as the ranking officer in command.

The elevator soon came to a stop on the 26th floor and the doors opened. Squall walked out into a waiting room that had a what looked like a simple receptionist desk that currently had a uniformed SeeD SF seated at it. Off to the right was a set of double doors that appeared to be heavily armored and meant to stop unauthorized entry. Two SeeD MPs were also stationed by doors at their own security desk. Both kept their eyes on Squall as he walked over to the receptionist's desk.

"Sgt Leonhart, reporting for mission briefing." He produced his Garden ID card and scanned it under the card reader situated on the desk. A higher pitched alert tone beeped as a bulb on the top flashed green. The receptionist looked at the information that came up on her computer screen for a moment then readjusted her eyes on Squall. Squall watched as she then looked back at her screen and typed a few commands into the computer.

"You can proceed. Room Seven."

Squall nodded with out saying anything then walked to the doors. They slid apart allowing Squall access to a long hallway. He proceeded through and began taking in his surroundings as he moved forward. To his right were a row of doors, each of which was spaced out evenly and numbered and also had the phrase _Briefing Room _above each number. There appeared to be ten rooms that ran the length of the hallway.

_OK, easy enough._

To his left, were several offices labeled with the high ranking officer that occupied them. One of them was General Crace's. Further down on his left were several separated war rooms. Squall glanced into one of them as he walked by and observed a two rows of desks with computers that faced each other and several large flat screens up on the far wall. Every desk in the room was occupied by a uniformed SeeD, mostly SF, although Squall did see a few Engineer SeeDs and a SeeD MP occupying as well. The room was sound proofed but from what he saw up on the large monitors on the far wall, appeared to Squall that they were coordinating the actions of SeeDs in two separate locations. One team looked like it was somewhere in Galbadia and the other outside a military base in Kadia. Galbadia and Kadia were ally nations and both were hostile to Balamb. More than likely it appeared to be a secret mission to spy on certain locations in both countries at the same time.

_This is the real thing._

As Squall quickly continued on down the hall, it suddenly dawned on him all over again that he was now SeeD SF; a trusted spec ops soldier. And as such, he had privileged access to the top secret areas, missions and intel gathering activities that Garden acted out. He had earned the right to be trusted.

When Squall reached Room Seven, he took a deep breath and walked in. Surprisingly, the room was set up like a college lecture room. Three rectangular shaped tables sat in the room, one behind the other with six seats each. All the tables and chairs faced forward towards a lecture style podium. Behind the podium was a large flat screen monitor. On each side of it was a desk; the right desk had two computer stations and the left desk remained open.

However, it was the occupants of the room that caused Squall to stop in his tracks. Standing at the podium was Headmaster Cid, whom was currently looking through the pages of a report. Seated at one of the computer stations was General Crace and next to him was General Ky Danzil, the ranking officer in charge of SeeD Engineering. They were talking quietly amongst themselves, each one pointing things out on the other's screens. At the left desk were two GFAs. They were going over a large stack of papers of their own.

Cid looked up at Squall and gave him a slight smile. "Sgt Leonhart, you're early. Thats excellent. Just what I like to see. Please take a seat in the front row at the center chair."

Squall did as he was told and quickly moved to the center chair in the front row.

General Crace looked up from his computer. "You're first mission Squall. Feel ready?"

Squall pulled his chair in further, leaned forward and placed both hands top of the table.

"Yes sir I am."

* * *

Quistis walked into the library ready to teach. Wearing the same outfit she had worn to the Fire Cavern with Squall and holding a brief case full of text books and charts, Quistis took a deep breath and walked over towards the group of students at one of the tables. True, she was no longer an Instructor but she could still tutor. She gave tutoring sessions several times a month to both older and younger cadets. Today she had a group of ten to twelve year olds, some of whom were no doubt members of the Trepies. She always wondered whether students, both males and females alike, joined her tutoring sessions because they though she was a good teacher or to simply gawk at her the whole time.

Quistis put her things down on the table and every cadet snapped to attention, saluting her. She returned the salute then took a seat at the head of the table.

"Good morning class. Today we will be going over some monster biology, some geography, and magic. Let's start out with geography. Can anyone name for me all the continents and the countries in them?"

One of the male cadets sitting to her right raised his hand. "Yes Dane, go ahead."

Dane sat up straight to before answering. "Terra has three continents; Centra, Tracia and Palmyra. Um, there's the Centran Continent, which is divided into the northern and southern island groups. The northern islands group is called Zarrathoss. The southern mass is called Tenicia. They are uninhabited by any civilization and are mostly open wilderness made up of forests, plains and the mountains. But most nations have laid claim to pieces of the southern islands and a few have even established outposts there. Then there's the Tracian Continent which has Esthar, Trabia, Kadia, Balamb and Shum'aht, which are the Shumi tribal homelands. Last is the Palmyran Continent. The nations there are the Republic of Galbadia, Dollet, Timber, Winhill and Fisherman's Horizon or FH for short. FH is technically a small city state in the middle of the ocean but was designated as part of Palmyra. "

"Excellent Dane. Now, who can tell me how many oceans there are and their names and locations?"

A girl farther down from Dane raised her hand.

"Amanda."

"Terra has four oceans. The Medius Ocean, which sits in between Palmyra and Tenicia and includes Balamb and FH. Then there's the Northern Ocean, which covers the northern part of the planet. The Adeo Ocean, which is located east of Tenicia and west of Palmyra. And the Southern Ocean which covers the southern part of the planet including the area that most of the Centran Continent sits on."

"Good answer Amanda, right on the mark. Ok, open your biology books to chapter four and go to page eighty-seven. What can anyone tell me about monster species?"

One of the cadets from the other side of the table raised his hand. Quistis nodded for him to speak.

"The planet has a single moon that orbits it and is home to creatures which are also known as "monsters". It is unknown how their life cycle works or how they are born since we cannot safely land on the moon and explore it. They are not native inhabitants of Terra; they migrate here during a rare event called the Lunar Cry. This is where a large amount, anywhere from hundreds of thousands to millions of monsters gathers in one place and concentrates their energy to create a viscous red slime-like material that they engulf themselves in."

Quistis nodded her head approvingly. "Good, what happens next?"

The boy sitting directly to her left spoke up. "This red material balls up together into a tear shape and leaves the moon, hence the term Lunar Cry. Once it begins to travel through space towards the planet, it becomes the Lunar Tear. It enters the atmosphere where the red slime burns up and releases all the monsters over that area of the planet. The monsters then spread out all over the globe and inhabit whatever region suits their needs for life. These habitats can be anywhere including mountains, desert, jungle, the ocean or even the sewers of some human cities. Some monster species live in solitude while other species seem to move together in packs."

Quistis smiled at the group. "Good, I can tell you guys have been reading and taking great notes. While monsters aren't naturally evil as some people think, they can be dangerous. All monsters have the natural ability to use magic and possess varying levels of intelligence. All species of monster seem to be plant or animal based in appearance and biology. Almost all species of monster are territorial and aggressive. Most monster species can be violent enough to attack animals or humans and in some rare cases even towns or cities."

Amanda raised her hand to get Quistis' attention. "What do they mean when they say a monster is a boss monster?"

Quistis turned to Amanda to address her question. "Good question Amanda. 'Boss monster' is a slang term of sorts for a monster that is unusually advanced for its type. This can be the alpha monster in a pack that gives the other monsters commands. It can also be a monster that is a single anomaly or mutant deviation. One that shows extreme intelligence or physical prowess and is the only one of its kind."

How many monsters are left on Centra today?" Dane asked.

"Many monsters are killed off by natural wild life, humans, other monsters and even the impact of the Lunar Tear landing itself," Quistis answered. "The last Lunar Cry happened a little over one hundred years ago and there is estimated to be somewhere between 2 and 3 million monsters left living on Centra today. Lunar Cries seem to happen at random points in time but no one is sure what triggers them."

Quistis flipped through a few more pages in the book then grinned slightly. "Can anyone name all the known species of monster?" The cadets at the table looked around to see if anyone would attempt to tackle that question but no one raised their hand.

Quistis let out a quiet chuckle. "That's ok, I can't name them all either." Her comment was met with laughter from the students. She waved the joke off then looked down to the page she was on. "If you turn to page ninety-nine there is a list of all the known monster species in alphabetical order. Who wants to read them out loud?"

One of the girls sitting to the right raised her hand and Quistis quickly pointed to her to read the list off.

She cleared her throat then started to read from the book. "Abyss Worm, Adamantoise, Anacondaur, Armadodo, Behemoth, Bite Bug, Blue Dragon, Buel, Cactuar, Caterchipiller, Cockatrice, Death Claw, Elnoyle, Fastitocolon, Fastitocolon-Fire, Funguar, Gayla, Geezard, Glacial Eye, Grand Mantis, Grat, Grendel, Hexadragon, Malboro, Mesmerize, Ochu, Propagator, Raldo, Red Bat, Ruby Dragon, Snow Lion, Thrustaevis, Torama, T-Rexar, Tri-Face, Turtapod and the Wendigo."

"Good job everybody. Why don't we take a ten minute break then come back and we will talk about magic a little bit."

The cadets got up from their seats and scattered. Quistis remained seated, her mind still reeling from having lost her position as an instructor. Then it dawned on her that she would soon be put back on active duty and placed into rotation for missions .

_I wonder when my next mission will be?_

The last mission she'd been on before becoming an instructor had been to escort a defecting Galbadian spy across the border into Dollet. Quistis had been part of an five member SeeD team. She and one other SeeD had been the ones to actually to sneak the Badian spy across the border. They'd almost made it across with out any issue when one of the Badian soldiers stationed there caught on to the operation. Before he would raise any alarm however, Quistis had shot the soldier twice in the lungs with a suppressed .22 caliber pistol in a back office. The border guard collapsed to the floor and weakly begged Quistis to spare his life. The request had momentarily caused her to pause, giving the soldier a opening to reach for his sidearm. But Quistis was faster on the uptake and saw him reaching and had put another two rounds into the man's skull. They'd been able to get the spy out successfully afterwards.

She slowly got up from her seat and walked out of the Library. Right now she could really go for a great big coffee and that's what she intended to get.

* * *

Cid walked over to Squall's table holding a two personnel files in one hand and a large cup of coffee in the other. "Squall, for this mission you will the designated team leader and as such, will have operational command of all actions taken overseas. You will be assigned two other SeeD SF operators for this job. They will be up shortly. As is procedure, you were brought up first to be briefed as a supervisor so you can get an familiarize yourself with your team."

Cid placed the files in front of Squall then took a sip of his coffee. "Go ahead and open them up. Each one is a profile on your teammates."

Squall did as he was told and opened them both up. When he did so, the faces in the pictures and names listed underneath them caused his eyes to widen.

_Zell Dintch...Selphie Timlitt. You gotta be fucking kidding me!_

General Crace looked up from his computer, having noticed the expression on Squall's face. "Something wrong Leonhart? Something to add or object to?"

Squall quickly recovered his composure. "No sir." He began to read over their backgrounds, biographical information and their specialties.

**Selphie Tilmitt: **Payroll #336153456

Birth Date: 7/16/2199

Age: 17

Height: 5'2

Weight: 105

Eye: green

Hair: auburn

Blood Type: B

Status: Active

Nationality: Trabian, orphaned during the Sorceress War

Specialty: Trained in use of explosives and skilled in demolitions, trained in the creation of makeshift explosives from commonly available items, certified with high marks in the use of rocket launchers, RPGs and guided missiles, certified combat medic.

**Zell Dincht: **Payroll #336153822

Birth Date: 3/17/2199

Age: 17

Height: 5'9

Weight: 180

Eye: blue

Hair: blond

Blood Type: B

Status: Active

Nationality: Balamese, orphaned during the Sorceress War

Specialty: Highly trained in a fighting style called Shento-ken. It is deadly killing art which blends concepts of parkour, stealth movements and use of shadows at night mixed with strikes using hands, elbows, knees and feet. Relies heavily on the concept of intercepting and redirecting attacks before counter attacking with a barrage of strikes. Also heavily emphasizes the use of the knife and throwing blades for quiet dispatch of opponents.

As Squall looked over their profiles, he took note of something interesting. Both Zell and Selphie were orphaned during the Sorceress War, just like him.

_That is one serious coincidence._

Squall had already known that Zell had been adopted from when they'd visited his house in the capital but he didn't know he was orphaned during the war. Nor did he know that Selphie was a war orphan either. A sharp, sudden pain shot through Squall's skull which forced him to slam his eyes shut for a moment, accompanied by a ringing in his ears. Then an image jetted through his mind for the briefest moment. A piece or fragment of what he thought might be a memory of an orphanage with lots of kids residing at it. Most of whom had been orphaned because of the war. Squall had no knowledge or memory of his early childhood before Garden. He kept his eyes closed and used his right hand to massage his temples until the pain and ringing ceased.

"Sgt Leonhart, if I could have your attention." General Crace moved the computer mouse and made a few clicks and the large screen on the wall behind him lit up, showing both Selphie and Zell's profiles. Squall shook off the head ache then looked up from the paperwork and redirected his attention to the screen.

"Along with you Squall, Selphie Tilmitt and Zell Dintch were chosen for this operation for specific purposes. Those reasons will be discussed during the briefing after your teammates arrive."

A few minutes later there was a knock at the door before it opened and in walked Zell and Selphie, both in their SeeD uniforms. They immediately saluted in unison then stood at attention.

"At ease, please take a seat," the General stated.

The two SeeDs walked over to Squall's table and took sat down, one on each side of him. Zell and Squall made brief eye contact and nodded to each other.

General Crace walked over to the table a placed a single, mission file down on it. The large file appeared to have decent weight to it because of the volume of papers it contained. On its cover in the top right hand corner was the phrase _Top Secret _stamped in red ink. In the center of the page, _Operation Reforestation_ was printed in black ink. Squall opened the file and saw the first page, which listed the client's name and brief summary of their background.

_A resistance group...the Forrest Owls_

The name didn't ring a bell with Squall but that wasn't a huge surprise considering that Timber had hundreds, if not thousands, of resistance groups of varying size spread out across that nation. And all of these groups fought towards a single shared goal; the independence of their country from Galbadian occupation.

Cid walked back over to the podium and General Crace took his seat back at the computer.

"Alright, lets get started. Direct your attention to the screen behind me. Right after Galbadia pulled of its forces out of Dollet, an emergency meeting was called to order at the Global Confederacy of Nations HQ in Trabia. The purpose of this meeting was to solidify the treaty negotiated by Galbadia and Dollet. Galbadia would stay out of Dollet as long as Dollet left the communications tower located just north of Chartersville in operating shape. They also had to leave several Galbadian technicians there to run it. Their reasons for this are still unknown."

General Crace brought up a digital map of Timber on the flat screen and Cid continued.

"Another topic brought up was possible sanctions to be brought against the Badians for an unlawful invasion. This motion was quickly shot down however from a lack of support from the other nations, including Timber. As you know, Timber was occupied by Galbadia back during the Sorceress War and remains under their control to this day. The representative from Timber is a puppet figure head and will back Galbadia's stance no matter what. As a result, the Global Confederacy of Nations is currently split into three factions. Shumia, Trabia and Esthar remain neutral as always. Galbadia, Timber and Kadia have banned together while Balamb, Fisherman's Horizon, Winhill and Dollet having sided in opposition to Galbadia's actions. We cannot allow Galbadia to take such aggressive actions or tip the scales in such a drastic manner. This brings us to your mission."

The Headmaster signaled for the next picture which was an expanded map of Timber's capital city, Wolfsburg. It showed key locations inside the city including its government buildings, police stations, fire houses, hospitals, G-army bases and known troop movements. General Crace now stood and began walking over to the video monitor with a laser pointer.

"Two weeks ago, we received a request for military assistance that we believe is perfect timing for a shadow operation against Badian forces in Timber to severely weaken their grip on the country. Your mission is to go to Timber. Once there, you will be supporting a resistance faction called the Forrest Owls while also protecting its two leaders. They are considered VIPs and must be protected. You will take the Medius Underground Railway across the Medius Ocean. The train goes all the way to Wolfsburg. There you will get off at the Wolfsburg International Train Station. A member of the faction will be waiting to make contact with you. When this person addresses you, he will say, 'the forests of Timber sure have changed.' At this time you must reply, 'but the owls are still around'. That is the password phrase. The Galbadian presence in Timber has lessened over time, especially in Wolfsburg. You are to follow the faction's orders and help them to overthrow the Galbadian leaders there by causing significant destruction to Badian forces through the use of guerrilla tactics. Questions?"

Squall raised his hand. "What are our cover identities? Also, how will weapons be acquired?"

The General looked over at General Danzil. He nodded and made a few key strokes on his keyboard then moved the mouse and clicked on it. Several pictures of the drop off sight appeared up on the flat screen.

"The trains in Wolfsburg are well monitored for weapons and explosives." Crace began. "You will leave your weapons and gear with us ahead of time and they will then be smuggled into the capital to a place picked by the resistance faction. I believe it's a storage site for building materials that is currently abandoned. Your first job is to get your weapons. Keep in mind that the capital is patrolled by Galbadian regulars that have the Wolfsburg police under their control. You will have to conceal them to the best of your abilities. Your cover identities will be as college students from Balamb."

Zell looked at the others then back at Cid. "Will it be just the three of us sir?"

The GFA stood to answer this question, pacing back and forth as he did so. "That is correct. We have agreed to do this mission for very little money, 200,000 Gil to be exact. Normally, we would never accept such requests from little known factions with no real money to give but-"

"That's not important." General Crace snapped. The GFA turned to see the General giving him a death glare and quickly shut up. Squall resisted the urge to grin; it was a pleasant change to see someone who could give those assholes orders and no one did it better than Lucious Crace. He was badass in every definition of the term.

Cid looked over at the General then back to the three SeeDs. "As the General said, that's not important. Its true that we have accepted this mission for less money than usual. But that is my discretion and my call to make. To balance that out, we are sending three rookie SeeDs instead of veterans that would cost the resistance group more money. However, it is that same rookie status that makes you three perfect for this mission as there is virtually no chance of the Badians already having intel dossiers on you. Whereas some of our veterans have been surveilled by Galbadian and Kadian intelligence agencies and would be recognized almost immediately. But enough talk about that. Sgt Leonhart, you will be team leader. Pvt Dincht and Pvt Tilmitt will take orders from you and provide support. Use your best judgment based on the situation."

Selphie raised her hand. "What else can you tell us about the Forrest Owls?"

"They are a smaller group that operates primarily inside Wolfsburg. Our intel sources indicate that they are heavily trusted and allied with several other groups in the city and that fact could be used to our advantage. Strengthen the Owl's position amongst their allies if possible."

A sudden thought occurred to Squall. "Sir, what's our timeline? Are we to help them with a single strike against a Badian target there? Or several targets? And whats our plan for exfiltration?"

"We don't have a solidified timeline at this point. All the three of you need to know is that you are to support the Owls until they complete their tactical goals. They will fill you in when you meet up with their designated contact."

Squall's eyebrow cocked up suspiciously. He'd never heard of an open ended contract from Garden before. He was tempted to inquire into the meaning of it more but decided not to as he surmised he'd been given all the info they felt the needed to share. And Squall intended to follow orders.

"Obviously," Crace began, "this is a standard black op and as such, if any of you are captured or killed Balamb Garden will disavow any knowledge of your presence or purpose in Timber. And since this is a black op you will not be able to claim POW status and protection if captured."

The three SeeDs all nodded solemnly in unison, the gravity and finality of the General's statement sinking in.

"Any other questions or concerns," Cid asked.

"What about communications with Garden?" Selphie inquired.

"Trying to reach out to Garden while on assignment is risky. The Galbadians have a well developed intel and surveillance program. So we can't risk your voices being recorded and your images being captured by CCTV. Use normal secured channels through the internet using the issued laptop we will provide your team with. They have highly encrypted programs installed on them that your were trained on that will allow you to reach out to us here with an internet connection and can even detect intrusion or a breach of the connection."

General Crace pointed to the large mission file. "The entire mission file is on the laptop as well. Familiarize yourself with the group's abilities and the city itself as well as resources you can use to aid you."

"Yes sir," Squall replied.

"Right now, you're to pack up your weapons, clothing and gear and bring them back here. You can hold on to your clothing but we have MPs waiting to handle the hardware. The train will leave at noon so after you are done the three of you are to head to Balamb City. Tickets have been provided. Dismissed."

Squall, Zell and Selphie all stood and saluted before exiting the briefing room. After they left, Cid quietly got General Crace's attention and nodded for him to wait until everyone else left. General Danzil finished signing off on several paperwork allocating resources from his branch to be designated to the Timber SeeD team then picked up his papers and brief case and left. Cid and Crace watched the two GFAs bickered amongst themselves over the profit margin of this mission and what NORG would have to say. After they left, the General turned to Cid.

"This is how its supposed to play out Cid. We simply have to trust in the information she gave us before she disappeared."

"I know Lucious. This day has finally come...you'd think I'd be more prepared for it. That I'd be ready for it."

"I realize its tempting to tell them more, considering we know how things play out...at least to a certain degree."

Cid turned to Lucious, placing his hand on the General's shoulder. "Its heart breaking to send them off knowing the role they have to play with out warning them. But I trust in my wife and what she told us both all those years ago ."

Lucious Crace laughed slightly. "What she gave us...just enough info to insure things play out a certain way while still keeping us in the dark."

Cid shrugged. "Probably to keep us from inadvertently saying or doing something that changes the way things play out."

Crace slowly nodded. "Our roles in this are just about finished old friend. Now we sit back and wait."

* * *

When the team got back down to the first floor, they made their way back to the Dormitory entrance before Squall pulled them both aside.

"Zell, you still have your truck here right?" Squall asked.

"Yea, it's still here."

"Ok then we are going to take it back into Balamb City to save us some time. You can drop it off at your mom's house before we catch the train to Timber."

"Sounds like a plan."

Squall nodded to both of them then turned to head towards the dorms. As they walked Squall began to think about this mission. Sending three rookie operators to overthrow a capital city and consequently an entire nation is something that seemed a little far fetched, even for Garden's elite SeeD SF soldiers. What was really going on? Both the Headmaster and the General had to know that the three of them couldn't possibly ignite a coup d'e'tat. Cause serious damage to Galbadian forces through planned quick strikes? Sure, absolutely plausible. At least for a while. But would it be enough to cause the Badian presence in Timber to weaken to the point of collapse? Not likely. And the Badians would eventually catch on to their tactics and put the city on lock down, effectively ending any ability of the SeeDs to conduct guerrilla strikes on them.

What was the real purpose for sending the three of them to Timber? And why the three of them? Squall didn't want to overthink it and trusted Cid and especially General Crace. But at the same time part of his training as Special Forces was to be a detective and use observation, logic and deduction to find and gather intel. But also to be suspicious and recognize when a situation or information provided didn't add up or make logical sense. Ultimately, at least for the time being, Squall was a soldier, a rookie soldier, and would do as he was told. He put any more thoughts on the logistical problems of this mission on the back burner for now.

* * *

Seifer sat in his cell on the 13th floor with a rather passive look on his face considering the situation he was in. After he had been arrested, he'd been taken here and held for several hours before they had led him to disciplinary hearing. Seifer had known this might have been coming and didn't act the least bit surprised. While the GFA's, Cid and Crace all put their two cents in, Seifer stood by his desk silently with a look of total indifference etched on his face. None of it mattered to him. Not one bit. He knew he was destined for greatness and wouldn't let Garden, Cid, General Crace or some meaningless court martial stop him from becoming the greatest warrior alive.

The two SeeD MPs working in the jail at the time were seated at a desk on the opposite side of the room from the cells. One of the guards was watching TV while the other looked over Seifer's gunblade.

"Hey asshole, could you be careful with that. I'm gonna need it when I get out of here."

The two guards turned their attention to Seifer and started laughing. The one holding Hyperion cackled extra loud. "Boy, you must be dumber than dog shit. You'll be in that cell for another week while they finalize your expulsion. Then they'll confiscate most of your shit, including this thing, before they kick your ass out. So tell me, what do you think will be the first thing you do when they kick your ass to the curb?"

"Get a job mowing lawns," the other one snorted. Both MPs began to laugh again.

"You got a mom or a sister? Or both perhaps? Maybe I'll start by tracking them down and giving you a new sibling and a niece or nephew."

The guards immediately stopped laughing and the one holding the gunblade slammed it down on the table before standing up and starting towards Seifer's cell.

"You son of a bitch! I'm gonna put my foot so far up your ass…"

Seifer back away from the cell door and and crossed his arms. "I'm right here pussy. Open this door and you can catch these hands. I will knock both of you the fuck out."

The second guard jumped up and got ahead of the first one. "Hey, hey, hey, calm down dude. Just ignore him." the other one said. The first one grumbled something under his breath and made his way back to the table. Seifer smiled and blew him a kiss as he did.

* * *

When Quistis returned from the cafeteria with her coffee, she found her students waiting for her at the table. Taking one final sip to finish the cup she sat down and put it aside then focused her attention back on the lesson.

"Everyone here? Great! Now let's get back to it. Who can tell me what magic is and what the real term for it is?"

The boy sitting on the far left end of the table raised his hand. "The real term for magic is Ethereal Force. It can also be called Elemental Force. It is the energy used to manipulate matter. 'Magic' is a slang term."

"Ok and what is a spell?"

"The term 'spell' is a mental and physical manipulation of matter by someone wielding Ethereal Force, or magic. The word magic is misleading because it suggests the user is creating matter from nothing or out of thin air. This is not true because the energy used cannot make new matter, only manipulate existing matter."

"Text book answer. Now who can tell me the groups of magic and the types with in them?"

Amanda immediately raised her hand. Quistis pointed to her to answer.

"There are four groups of magic. The first is Weather Magic and it consists of water, wind, earth, fire and lightning spells in all their different forms. The second group is Forbidden Magic and it consists of light and dark spells. Light spells are made from the energy found within light itself and are concentrated beams of light energy similar to laser beams. Dark spells are energies derived from the absence of light used to cause status attacks that affect the abilities of the victim. Those are blindness and sleep spells. There is also poison, which is basically a type of magical poison that sickens the victim for a certain amount of time. The third group is called Neutral Magic. It has the spells cure, esuna, protect, shell and ultima. Protect and shell will absorb physical or magical attacks up to a certain limit for a certain amount of time. Cure is used to heal or treat physical wounds, help prevent infection or replenish energy temporarily. It can become dangerous if someone uses too much too quickly. Esuna is used to neutralize dark spells."

"How about ultima, what is that exactly?"

"Ultima is a very powerful but unstable Neutral spell that is considered to be the most destructive magical attack. When used this spell focuses a large amount of energy into a single point then releases it as a spherical bomb. The bomb causes an explosion that can create destruction on a massive scale."

"And the last group?"

"The final group is Support Magic; sometimes called Blue Magic. This group has the spells of shift and form. Shift is manipulation of magic to move objects at varying degrees of speed and force in any direction, like telekinesis. Form is used to change the physical properties of matter such as changing a solid to a liquid or gas and then back."

"Excellent work everyone."

Another one of the younger students raised her hand. Quistis acknowledged her. "Can you cast the ultima spell?"

Quistis shook her head and smiled. "Unfortunately I cannot. Not only is it the most powerful and destructive spell, its also the most difficult and hazardous to attempt to cast. Many talented casters have injured and even killed themselves attempting to conjure up enough power and focus it into a single point or singularity. Although the technique for casting it is well known across the globe, there is currently no known person that can cast ultima. The last known person to have the ability to cast it was Sorceress Adel. But maybe its for the best that nobody can cast it because its very dangerous and destructive and in the wrong hands could be used to wipe out towns or even cities."

All the students became quiet, some nodding in solum understanding.

Quistis closed the text book in front of her then addressed the whole table. "Anyway, I am really impressed with you guys today. All of you seem to have been studying hard lately and it will all pay off when you take the tests in your classes. I think that's all we will cover for today. I am going to cancel Saturday's class because I have some things to do but next Thursday we will meet back here at the same time. Your all dismissed, enjoy the rest of your day."

Quistis stood and was saluted again by all the cadets. She saluted back then nodded signaling that they could leave. Quistis packed up her things then turned to leave the library. She wanted to get some training in today and decided to drop off her things at her apartment and grab her whip then head over to the training center. With the briefcase holding her books, maps and charts in her hand she started off towards the dorms.

* * *

Squall tossed his gym bag into the back of the pick up truck next to Zell and Selphie's bags. After handing over their weapons and gear to the MPs, General Crace had given them their tickets and had wished them luck. Then they had gone to the garage to pack the truck up.

Squall opened the passenger side door and hopped in. Zell was behind the wheel while Selphie sat in between the guys.

"Alright Zell, lets get going. We need to get to your mom's house soon so we don't run the risk of missing the train," Squall said.

"Don't worry about it dude. The train station is right by my house so we'll get there with plenty of time." Zell turned the ignition and the truck jumped to life.

"Oh my gosh, I am so excited!" Selphie exclaimed.

"We know!" Zell and Squall both said in unison.

Zell put the truck into gear and took off down the ramp and out onto the road. A minute later he turned onto the Island Expressway and accelerated towards Balamb City.

* * *

Seifer had been sitting quietly in his cell when he saw Raijin and Fujin walk into the room. The two guards stood up and blocked their way.

"We're here to talk to Seifer ya know."

"Visit."

"Names," one of the MPs countered.

"Fujin Tao."

"Raijin Kahn."

They handed over their ID's to the MP who scanned them then handed them back.

"You've got ten minutes."

Raijin and Fujin nodded and made their way over to the other cell that held Seifer. He looked up from his cell and grinned then walked over to bars.

"Whats up guys?"

"Nothing Seifer. We just came in to check on ya."

"Ok?" Fujin asked.

"I'm fine guys. I'm getting booted out soon. I suppose this was going to happen eventually. I guess I'm just not the type to take orders very well. It doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things though. They will all see…"

"Unfair."

"I know Fu, I know. They just don't know potential when they see it I guess."

"We're with you till the end ya know. If you leave, we're coming with you."

"We'll figure that out after I get out of here. Anything else new?"

"Yea, I heard from a buddy of mine in Engineering that Squall got his first mission today. Rumor is that him, Zell and that new girl Selphie chick have been assigned to Timber for something but we couldn't find out what. Some team huh."

Seifer's eyes seemed to bulge out of his head at Raijin's comment. "What!? They sent puberty boy, chicken shit and the messenger girl off to help her? That's bullshit! That was supposed to be my mission and my glory. That was my first stepping stone to greatness. I know what the Forest Owls are planning and it should be me that kills Deling. It's the reason I helped her arrange the meeting with Cid. I need to get out of here fast and I know just how to do that. After I get out of here I'll contact you two somehow. Now get going and lay low for a while."

Fujin stepped closer to Seifer. "Careful."

"Yea bro, watch your back ya know."

"Don't worry guys, it's me remember. I always got a plan. Just make sure the door to this room is closed when you leave."

Raijin and Fujin nodded slowly then waved good bye keeping everything looking normal. They walked past the two guards and closed the door to the brig tightly.

Seifer started to contemplate how he was going to take both guards down with out one of them getting to an alarm. It would be easy enough to get the one guard over here fast enough but taking them both down quick enough presented a problem. As if to answer Seifer's question, the guard with out the temper stood up and announced he had to go take a dump. He got up and left the room and even closed the door behind him as he did.

_ Here we go._

"Hey let me ask you something. Which side of your mom's skull do you think I should screw first? The right or the left?" Seifer could have sworn he'd seen steam blow out the ears of the quick tempered MP.

"That's it jerk off! I am gonna rip your heart out through you ass!" He jumped up out of his seat and started marching over towards the cell, fumbling with the keys to Seifer's cell. Seifer had binding bracelets on each wrist preventing him from casting any spells so he knew he'd have to use a quick move. Slowly rising to his feet he waited for his target to enter the cell.

The MP got the key into the opening and unlocked cell door. Knowing the cell doors swing out, Seifer jumped up and grabbed a metal beam going across the top of his cell then kicked the cell door with both feet as hard as he could. The door swung open catching the MP right in the face sending him flying back and crashing into the ground. He started to get up but Seifer was already out. He ran up to the MP and threw a single front snap kick, hitting the guard square in the face. His nose exploded with blood and the MP hit the ground unconscious.

Seifer quickly searched him for the key to his bracelets. He found it in the MP's left pocket. He got the bracelets off then stripped the guard of his duty belt which held all his weapons and gear. Then he dragged the guard into the cell and locked door behind him. Seifer put the MP's duty belt on and checked the pistol to make sure it was loaded. Then he grabbed Hyperion's scabbard off the table and attached it to his duty belt. Lastly, he gently picked Hyperion up off the table and carefully holstered it into the scabbard.

Seifer slowly opened the door to the brig and poked his head out into the hallway. It looked clear so he quietly closed the door behind him and made his way towards the elevators. After that he would make his way to the garage as fast as he could and hot wire one of the vehicles before making his daring escape. With out another moment's hesitation, he took off.

_I already assaulted one SeeD MP and broke out of jail so what was stealing a car on top of that?_

It made no difference to him anymore.

* * *

Quistis made her way through the connecting passage to the main hall on her way to the training center. She had a lot of stress and frustration on her mind and figured a good work out in the gym and the live combat area would do her some good.

_I really though I could have opened up to Squall but he really let me down this time. All I wanted to do was talk to someone, was that so bad? On top of that they canned your ass Trepe so how could your day get any worse?_

The answer came in the form of Seifer Almasy. She looked through the crowd of people to see him making a b-line for the Garage.

"What the hell?"

She took off after him running as fast as she could to catch up. She ran through the connecting passage and entered the SeeD Garage. It appeared to be completely empty. She slowly unlatched her whip and started walking around. Suddenly she heard a rustling noise coming from the other side of a van four cars down. Slowly she made her way over, cautious not to make a single sound. She raised her whip to the ready and turned the corner of the van to find nothing. She let out a deep breath and turned back to find the point of an obsidian colored blade stuck in her face.

"Instructor."

"Seifer, what the hell are you doing?"

"I decided that I'm not going to just wait around for them to simply throw me out and take everything from me. I am going to get out of here and go find my glory. And you are going to help me Instructor."

Quistis snorted in anger. "I'm not an Instructor anymore, thanks to you."

Seifer's face softened a little and what appeared to be genuine remorse or guilt spread across it slightly. "I am truly sorry to hear that Quistis. I didn't mean for you to lose your job. But you are still going to help me out. Toss the whip over here and your car keys. I know you have them on you, you always do."

Quistis tossed her whip to Seifer's feet then slowly reached into her pocket and produced the keys to her car.

"Good. Now, lights out." Seifer stuck his other hand out before shooting a black liquid-like spherical projectile that nailed Quistis center mass. The second it touched her she instantly became woozy and dropped to the ground unconscious.

"Gotta love those sleep spells."

* * *

The truck slowly pulled into the back driveway of Zell's house. Zell, Squall and Selphie all got out and stretched their legs then grabbed their bags from the back of the truck. Zell turned to Squall and pointed back towards his house.

"Hey, I'm going to run in and drop my keys off. Say hi to my mom real fast."

Selphie jumped in excitement. "We'll come with you."

Squall grabbed Zell by the arm and turned him around. "Make sure you don't slip and tell your mom what we are going off to do."

Zell nodded slowly to Squall. Zell could sometimes let his emotions get the better of him. And this in turn caused loose lips on his part.

The three made their way into the house and found Ma Dincht in the family room reading.

"Why hello Zell, what a wonderful surprise! What brings you guys here again?"

"Nothing Ma, I just returned the truck and dropped off the keys for you to hold until I get back."

"Where are the three of you off to?"

"We got an out door training class. I'm going to leave the truck here for a few days. We got to get going though but I just wanted to drop the keys off and say hello."

"But you already graduated, aren't classes done?"

"The training never really stops."

Ma Dincht nodded slowly as if to say she would just leave it at that. The she got up off the couch and walked over to Zell then gave him a big hug. Selphie was next and gladly accepted the hug, beaming with her usual smile as she did so. When she got to Squall he offered his hand to shake. Ma Dincht looked at Squall's hand for a moment then took it and shook it.

"Still the serious one I see. Well maybe that will change one day."

"Maybe one day." Squall didn't really take her predictions seriously, but he still humored her.

Zell waved goodbye to his mom as he closed the door behind him. Squall and Selphie were waiting down by the sidewalk. He quickly joined up with the rest of the group and they crossed the street to the other side.

Looking down at his ticket he read that they had tickets for train seven. They walked over to the booth and handed their tickets in. The teller scanned the tickets then looked back up to the group.

"You're all together?"

"Yes." Squall answered.

The teller nodded then gave Squall their tickets back and a single card that would get all three of them into their booth. Squall thanked her then gave Selphie and Zell their tickets.

Train seven was already there so they decided to board right away. They gave their tickets to the door attendant then walked onto the train. Squall was the last SeeD to board, giving Balamb City one last look before hopping on.

* * *

**MORE NOTES...READ!**

I hope you like the explanations of magic and monsters. With the magic, I wanted it as straight forward and simple as possible with out too many rules or restrictions. I changed some of the names and groupings to simplify it a bit. There is no drawing magic or a set number of spells a human can hold like ammunition in a mag. It just doesn't seem plausible or PRACTICAL since different humans would possess different magical limits. IF you are trained then you would simply cast spells until you became too exhausted to continue.

You may have also noticed that there aren't levels of strength(fire, fira, firaga) in the story. If you wanted a small sized fire spell for a ball of fire (fire) or a big one (fira or firaga) then just conjure that up. A fire spell is all the same thing, its just how big and hot the caster wants it to be and is able to make it. Same thing with water spells, they could be shards of ice, a wave of water or snowballs. Also, someone can combine some magics, like fire and water to make steam. Thats why I made it that way, so its open ended. You may have noticed that I cut out many monster types from the game. I wanted to use monsters that were either plant-like or animal-like because they seem more biologically possible. So some monsters (like a Bomb for example) will never be used because realistically, how could it exist as an animal? It just became too difficult and frankly silly to try to explain the biological life cycle of a Bomb monster.

Until next chapter!


	11. Dream: Sir Laguna

**Chapter 11**

**Dream: Sir Laguna**

Monday, May 9th, 2217NE

12:10pm

Squall, Selphie and Zell all stood in one of the common areas. Several dozen other people stood about, some talking while others leaned quietly against the walls. Squall had perched himself up against the wall, listening to the movement of the train. He looked to see what his other team mates were doing. Zell stood in the center of the room, swaying back and forth with the motion of the train. Selphie had glued herself to one of the windows and was fixated on the tunnel. Squall didn't understand how she could watch the train speed by light after light and not become nauseous from it.

_So this is it, this is being a SeeD. This is what it's all about and this is what our lives will be from now on._

Squall felt proud to be a SeeD. And along with that pride should have come a sense of completion. A sense of wholeness that he now had his place and purpose in this world. And yet he did not feel whole. He couldn't help but feel as if something else was still missing; something kept him from being complete. But what and why? He'd accomplished everything he'd set out to do. True that Squall would eventually try to go up in rank to progress his career even further but this is something that would gradually come in time. He knew that he'd have to earn higher ranks. And so that wasn't it. Perhaps it had something to do with what Ifrit had said to him in the Fire Cavern. And what about how cryptic and confusing both Cid and Crace had been towards him lately. Was that it then? Just the talk of two supervisors and a Guardian Force getting to him too much? Causing him to overthink his job? What did they know that he didn't? Or was this nagging feeling in the back of his head meant to direct him towards something grander?

_Enough._

Squall shook off any more deep reflection for the time being. Grand fate and destinies aside, right now he had a mission to focus on. And day dreaming about some horse shit fantasy is a distraction that would lead to his team failing and being caught, or killed. Squall would make sure everything went down according to plan. The General and the Headmaster both trusted him with this mission and he was determined to complete it. He would delivery success.

Squall turned his attention back to his team mates. Both of them appearing calm and collected. He knew they were just as qualified as him. A little goofy and odd, but still qualified and certified SeeD Spec Ops soldiers. But Squall was sure they wanted victory just as much as him. That their determination not to fail was just as strong as his. And he was determined not to fail either of them as their team leader.

"This train is awesome!" Selphie declared.

Zell nodded. "It's the only transcontinental railroad on the planet that goes under the ocean. It comes right up into Timber and stops at Wolfsburg." He turned his attention to Squall. "Pretty cool eh Squall?"

"Sure is..." Squall didn't really care too much about it as long as it got them there.

Zell sighed and let his shoulders drop in defeat at Squall's response. "Guess you're not interested." Zell straightened back up and looked over at the door leading off to the personal cabins then remembered they had bought a ticket for one. "By the way Squall, you have to use the ticket to get us to our cabin."

_Oh yea…_

He had completely forgotten about their room and cursed himself again for letting his mind wonder to annoying thoughts of destiny. He walked over to door and slid his card into the reader. It hummed for a moment before it beeped and a green light lit up. Squall heard the door unlock. "We can go inside now."

Selphie was the first one in. "I want to check it out!" She ran by Zell and Squall, appearing as just a small yellow blur.

"I'm gonna go to." Zell walked into the next cabin leaving Squall behind.

Squall looked around at the rest of the people; none of which seemed to pay any attention to the SeeDs. He shrugged then followed them in. Directly through the door was another small hallway with doors to private rooms off to the left. Zell and Selphie both stood looking out the windows. The train had entered a section of the tunnel that was above ground in the ocean. The lights of the train and the ones on the track outside provided a decent view of the vastness of the ocean floor. Zell noticed Squall and turned to him.

"Check it out Squall! This room right here is all ours. It's like SeeD's personal cabin!"

"Not so loud Zell. We don't want anyone to know who we really are."

"Okay, okay, relax already." Zell responded. He turned to the door and pushed the button to open it. The door slide to the left and Zell walked in, impressed by what he found. "Whoa! Oh yea baby! Awesome! This place is great."

Squall started for the room but stopped and turned to Selphie. "Selphie, you coming?"

"I love trains." Selphie didn't seem to have really been listening to Squall but snapped out of it when she saw him still standing there. "I'm gonna hang out here for a bit, I'll meet you inside."

Squall nodded then walked into their personal room. Squall had to admit that the inside of the room was nice. Everything seemed to be crafted from wood and the room had a clean, fresh scent to it. Off to the left were a small entertainment system, a set of plants, a fridge and a nice end table. Behind that was a plush wrap around couch that Zell was currently jumping up and down on. To the right of that was a set of bunk beads. Directly above the couch was a set of windows with their shades pulled down.

Squall walked over to Zell and shook his head. "I'm glad you're so excited."

Zell stopped jumping up and down and leaned forward, pointing to the end table. "They even have a huge stack of magazines! I willing to bet there are a few Combat King and Weapons Monthly magazines in there. Maybe even a few girly magazines like Girl Next Door." Zell let a grin appear on his face.

"Zell don't even think about looking through any porn magazines. We got a mission to think about here so keep your mind on that. Besides, what if Selphie walks in and finds you looking through those? It will make things awkward."

Zell chuckled and shook his head. "Relax Squall! You're too tense. Besides, we both know there aren't any Girl Next Door magazines on this train. I think Selphie might be a bit of a freak anyway. She probably looks through them too!" Zell started to laugh again and leaned back against the couch. "I'll tell you what dude; it pays to be a member of SeeD. This place is really amazing!"

Squall walked over to the couch and sat down. It was very comfortable; Squall could have easily have fallen asleep on it.

"So Squall, how much do you know about Timber or Wolfsburg?"

Squall though for a moment then realized he didn't know a whole lot. "Not much really. I mean nothing more then what we were taught in school and what we learned back at the briefing."

"Timber used to be a country full of lush, green forests. But then Galbadia invaded and destroyed much of Timber's wooded areas and other natural resources. Timber's military was no match for Galbadia's military might and fell quite easily. It's said there's hundreds of resistance factions now, big and small, which operate all over the country."

"And?" Squall asked.

Zell rocked his head back and snorted. "Nope, that's all I know. The only other thing I could tell you is that the country is a wreck. I mean no one in Timber is actively fighting the Badians anymore. They've turned the country into a strict police state. It's sort of a shit hole nowadays."

"Nice history lesson."

"Hey, no problem buddy, that's what I'm here for."

Squall was about to say something else when the door slid open and Selphie stumbled in. She appeared a little off to Squall.

"I don't feel well, I'm really tired." Selphie mumbled.

Squall stood to get a good look at her. If she was getting really sick this could put a real snag in the gears of their mission. Selphie didn't appear to look ill to Squall but he did notice that she looked like she'd gone a day or two with out sleep. "You should get some rest if you're tired." Squall walked past her towards the fridge to grab a bottle of water.

"I'm really sleepy." Selphie whispered out loud.

Squall looked suspiciously at her. "You ok?"

Selphie didn't respond, she only managed to make it over to the couch before falling onto it sound asleep.

Zell suddenly stood up and started to sway slightly. "Oh man…" Before he could say anything else collapsed back down into the couch and fell asleep right next to Selphie.

"What the hell is going on?" Squall's heart began to race as his instincts went into overdrive. It could be a trap or set up of some sort and they were about to be ambushed. He reached to his hip for his gunblade, forgetting that he'd left it and the rest of his weapons at Garden to be smuggled into Wolfsburg. _Oh shit…_

Suddenly a loud sharp ringing filled his ears and his head. It was mind numbing, causing Squall to grab his head to try to make it stop. "Ugh…..What is this?" The noise grew even stronger and dropped Squall to his knees. Everything started to spin and darken at the same time. The last thing Squall saw before he blacked out was the carpet as he fell forward.

* * *

Squall awoke almost immediately but was shocked at what he saw. He was running, running on a dirt trail through a heavily wooded forest. Except he wasn't running, as a matter of fact it wasn't even his body he was seeing through.

"Hmmm!? What the hell is this?" he whispered.

Squall was pulled away from his thoughts by the sound of gunfire, machine gun fire to be exact. A second later he realized it was his "substitute body" that was doing the firing. Although he couldn't see what he looked like he could see two men running next to him. One, a large white male, was wearing a Galbadian army uniform and was armed with a large harpoon-like spear and sidearm. The other, a thinner dark skinned man, was armed with what appeared to be two long dagger-like weapons called katals. Squall immediately recognized them as Galbadian charger regulars. He managed to get a look down at what he was armed with; an MG4 machine gun. Squall realized he couldn't control the body he was in, only look through it. He remembered being in the train cabin a second ago then passing out and waking up here. For now, all he could do was go for along for the ride.

"Fall back! Fall back! There's too many of them!" Squall's body screamed. He fired into the bushes around them, doing some heavy spraying and praying. Squall could see monsters running through the bushes and long grass all around them.

"_What is going on?"_ Squall said.

The large white man ran up next to him and joined in on the firing with his sidearm. "We walked right into a fucking monster ambush!" He was trying to yell over the gunfire.

"No, we walked right into a large nest of Geezards and Anacondaurs." The dark skinned man added. "Sergeant, are you sure we are going the right way."

"Of course this is the right way Kiros! Ward, where the hell is the rest of the squad?" Squall's body asked.

"Their gone Laguna, their dead probably and we're next if we don't get the fuck out of here! There's gotta be hundreds of them out there." Ward snapped loudly.

Squall now knew that this person's name was Laguna and watched as he yanked two grenades off of his belt before popping their tops and launching them out into the underbrush. A second later two explosions rocked the area and sent a dozen or so monsters flying through the air. Laguna turned to his two remaining squad mates who were slapping fresh mags into their pistols.

"Ok guys, the name of the game is run n' gun. When I go, you two stay directly on my ass and don't fall behind. Pull your sidearms and leave the melee weapons." Laguna reached to the back of his duty belt and grabbed his spare drum magazine while Kiros and Ward dropped their weapons and drew their pistols. He hooked it up to the MG4 then cocked the weapon. "Okay…..now!"

Laguna jumped up to his feet and started sprinting as fast as he could down the trail, firing to the left and right as he did so. Ward and Kiros were right on his tail, taking shots in different directions. Up ahead, a pair of Anacondaurs jumped out of the bushes and started slithering with incredible speed at Laguna. Laguna trained his weapons on them as best he could while running and opened fire. Rounds went everywhere but enough of them hit their targets and tore the two monsters to shreds.

Squall meanwhile could still do nothing but watch, his own mind racing at the scene that lay before him. Suddenly Squall caught a glimpse of a Geezard off to Laguna's right side, trailing him. Laguna must not have seen it because he didn't turn to attack it. The Geezard got a little closer then lunged for Laguna's head with its mouth open.

"_On your three!"_

Laguna jolted slightly then turned to his right side and pulled the trigger. The machine gun jumped as it kicked to life and cut the monster down before it could get to Laguna. He continued running but looked around for anyone else in the area.

"Who said that?"

"Who said what?" Ward yelled.

"Never mind."

The three soldiers ran into an opening in the woods that had more forest up ahead. Around them was a huge field of long grass. There were some patches of it here and there that were in flames. They hurried through and ran into the next set of woods up ahead. The trail twisted and turned a few more times and they came to small stream. Up ahead Laguna saw a tree had been knocked down by an explosion, forming a small bridge across.

"Head for the tree," he ordered.

All three ran down the trail to the tree and climbed up then carefully made their way across. They continued their run down the trail when Laguna raised his fist for them to stop so they could catch their breaths.

"I can't believe the whole squad got wiped out," Ward commented between gasps.

"I told the Lt. not to take this trail through the woods. The locals had warned us that it had been a hot spot of monster activity."

"Speaking of which, why the hell are we in these Hyne damn woods in Timber anyway? Aren't we supposed to be taking on the 'mighty army of Timber' as Deling had called them? Why are we wasting our time with these things?" Ward looked over at Laguna who just shrugged.

"Guys, we're fighting monsters in some really thick woods near the Timber/Galbadia boarder for a cause we really don't even believe in."

"So you know how to get us back to the APC right? This is the right trail isn't it?" Kiros inquired suspiciously.

"Well ya see….that is, I mean…"

"Oh that is just great! We're completely lost!" Ward yelled.

"Calm down already! I pretty much know where we are. I'm sure the APC is right up ahead."

He was about to say something else but the sounds of roars coming from behind them caused the debate to abruptly end. They all started to back away from the trail leading back, checking their weapons for ammo.

"I'm completely out," Kiros stated.

Ward checked his belt for ammo. "I'm down to one mag left."

Laguna check his drum magazine "Shit, I'm down to about fifteen rounds," He turned a saw that the trail twisted off to the right about sixty yards down. Another roar, this one closer and louder, echoed through the air causing them all to jump.

"Ok we are moving right now!"

They all turned and started to sprint again down the trail. As they came around the last bend they all received a very pleasant surprise. Ten yards ahead of them the APC sat facing forward.

"Yes! See, I knew where we were the whole time."

Kiros and Ward exchanged doubtful glances then followed Laguna into the APC. Ward closed the back hatch behind him and Laguna jumped into the front seat then fired the APC up. It kicked to life and Laguna put it into drive then hit the gas as hard as he could. The APC lurched forward as it took off down the path.

Squall saw the scene start to fade out into blackness again and wondered if it was the end of his dream.

The next thing Squall saw was what looked like the capital of Galbadia, Deling City. He was in the front seat of an APC, although he didn't think it was the same one. The numbers on the side were different. It had to be some point in time in the future; perhaps day but more likely weeks. Squall deduced that he must be jumping forward in time through different scenes being shown to him. Laguna pulled into a no-parking zone near a large fountain and turned the truck off. Kiros and Ward looked at each other then back at Laguna.

Kiros pulled Laguna aside as they got out. "Laguna, I don't think you can park in this spot."

"Chill man, it's cool."

Ward slapped his forehead. "You idiot, you're gonna cause an accident or something."

"Hey you can't talk to me that way; I'm a sergeant and a superior officer ya know."

"Oh shut up with that; like it even means anything really."

"He's right Laguna," Kiros began. "All three of us were offered that one position for sergeant and we decided who would get it by playing rock-paper-scissors remember?"

"I remember killing both of you in that game." Laguna said, trying not to laugh.

_Rock-paper-scissors, who hell is this guy?_ Squall said to himself.

They got out of the APC and started down the street towards a certain local bar that Laguna always went to. Squall noticed that they all wore their blue colored BDUs but didn't have any body armor or weapons. He deduced that this meant they were on leave.

"So, how about we get ourselves a drink?"

"I'm good with that but I think we should go easy on the booze. They gave a few days leave but with the way things are on the front you know we're gonna get called back early." Kiros stated.

"I know that Kiros but I just want to have a friendly drink with you two."

Ward poked Laguna in the shoulder. "Bullshit! You just want us to go with you to that bar with the piano player that you like so it doesn't look like your stalking that broad."

"Now that hurts Ward. She has nothing to do with me having a drink with my two best friends."

"So what bar do you want to go to?" Kiros asked.

"Let's go to the Grand Galbadia Hotel shall we? They have such a nice bar and-"

"And a hot ass piano player woman." Ward finished.

Laguna turned bright red causing Ward and Kiros to start laughing hysterically. They turned and continued on down the street. Three blocks down they reached the front entrance to the hotel. Out in front where two Galbadian regulars that knew Kiros, Ward and Laguna. When the saw Laguna they started to laugh.

"Yo Laguna, what's up asshole? How did the scouting mission go in Timber?" One of them asked.

Ward snorted out loud. "Our squad's Lt. walked us right into a massive nest of monsters and we got obliterated."

"Sounds about right. I don't think the Tims have anything to worry about since we can't even make it through their God damn forests half the time."

Ward and Kiros nodded grimly but noticed that Laguna's mind seemed to have wondered off to some other place. The second soldier picked up on this and started to grin.

"Hey Laguna, you back to watch that pianist? I know you got the hots for her so don't even try to deny it." Both soldiers started laughing again.

Laguna turned a deep shade of crimson causing Ward and Laguna to join in on the laughing.

"Hey, just try not to get a woody in front of her or anything buddy. It's not like she even knows you exist."

Laguna tried not to grin and shook his head. "You guys are assholes."

Their laughter intensified and this only caused Laguna to get redder and redder. Ward came up behind him and slapped him on the shoulder then started to lead him towards the entrance to the hotel. All three of them waved to the two soldiers who were still laughing hysterically.

Inside the hotel was a vast, decorated lobby trimmed in dark and light colored woods. There was a set of stairs that lead down to the lounge where a small bar and stage was kept. Laguna only hoped that they hadn't missed her performance for tonight. He couldn't deny the fact that he was nervous, he always got this way every time he'd show up for one of her performances. He didn't know why he got so nervous either. It's not like she noticed him or anything.

Laguna silently scolded himself for being a coward. Taking the lead, he made his way down to the lounge. The lounge was dimly lit with dark colored walls and dark red carpet to give it a mysterious and romantic ambiance. The steps lead down to the floor of the lounge where the stage sat off to the right with a large piano on it. To the left of the steps was the bar and directly ahead of the steps were a dozen or so small booths, each with a single lantern. Large drapes hung from the ceiling to give the lounge a finishing touch.

Laguna cautiously made his way down each step; he could feel his heart speed up. The lounge was basically empty; the only people there were two or three soldiers, a bar tender and a single waitress. One of the soldiers saw Laguna and a look of disgust crossed his face. As Laguna and his friends walked by, the soldier stopped them.

"I recognize you; you're that fucking goof ball that always shows up for Julia's performances. You better behave yourself while she's here. I've been assigned to be her body guard and I don't intend on letting any jokers or half wits get anywhere near her."

Ward's nostrils flared. "Oh really tough guy, well hows about I knock you the fuck out and…"

Laguna stopped him before it went any further. "Ward, its cool man, don't sweat it." He turned his attention to Julia's body guard. "We don't want any trouble; we're just here for her performance."

"I'll be watching you pal." He stepped out of the way to let them pass.

Laguna nodded then signaled for Ward and Kiros to follow him. Ward and the body guard eyed each other up as they walked by but didn't say anything else. Laguna lead them over to the right side of the lounge to a corner both, it was the same one they always sat in.

"At ease men." All three took a seat on the booth and stretched out.

"_What kind of a dream is this?" _Squall asked.

Laguna suddenly stood again and turned to his two comrades. "We're going all out tonight, right boys!?" He signaled over to the waitress then took a seat.

"May I take your order?" she asked.

"The usual," Laguna replied

"Me too," Kiros added.

"Keep'em coming sweetie." Ward gave her wink.

The waitress nodded then walked back over to the bar. Ward leaned over and tapped Laguna on the shoulder.

"So Laguna…Julia should be making her appearance soon. You going for it tonight or what?"

"Yea, go for it man!" Kiros exclaimed.

Just as he was about to answer, the three of them saw Julia come out and take a seat by the piano and begin to play. She seemed intently focused on the piano itself, as if there was nothing else in the room. Laguna was absolutely astonished by her beauty. She had light colored skin that seemed to have a sort of glow to it and luscious black hair that flowed down to her shoulders. She wore a long red gown that accentuated the curves of her body. Laguna found himself struggling to breathe whenever she came into the room. He turned back to the others and slowly shook his head.

"Whatever man! Can't you see she's working?"

"Don't go back on you word Laguna, you said you'd try to talk to her. C'mon, at least go wave to her."

Ward chuckled. "Don't be a pussy man. And don't worry about the body guard, if he tries anything I'll just beat his head in."

"Gimme a break guys," Laguna pleaded.

"I know you'll do it." Ward gave Laguna a shove.

Laguna took a deep breath and slowly stood up. Ward and Kiros each gave him one last nod, letting him know he was doing the right thing. He slowly started towards the stage, taking small steps. When he got to the stage he stopped and just admired the sight of her for a moment.

_Ah, to be this close to Julia.._

"_Is this guy serious?"_ Squall questioned.

Laguna saw Julia look up from the piano and peer over towards him. Their eyes met for just a second before Laguna felt his leg go dead on him.

"Uh-oh…me leg's cramping up!"

He looked up one last time and saw Julia giggle slightly then turn her attention back to the piano. Laguna took what small amount of dignity he had left and hobbled back over to the booth.

"_Wow, that's just sad,"_ Squall commented.

"Good job Laguna, you at least walked up to her." Kiros was trying to reassure his friend.

Ward grinned and shook his head. "Mission successful!"

"Take a seat," Kiros pointed to the space next to him.

Laguna collapsed into the booth and let out a long sigh of defeat. Ward took a long swig of his drink then turned to Laguna.

"You did alright man! I didn't think you'd actually do it. Our popularity will definitely go up for that."

"Yea but you looked pretty pitiful figure up there. I'd say you're about a minus three on the manliness scale." Kiros said.

Laguna turned to his friends and rolled his eyes. "Say what you want…God, she is gorgeous."

Kiros went to take another sip of his drink and almost choked on it when he looked up. "Ahh…"

Ward looked up and almost dropped his glass. "Huh?"

Kiros nodded to Ward then turned to Laguna. "Hey man, we're takin' off." With out saying anything else, they got up and walked off to the back of the bar. Laguna stood up and started to protest.

"H-hey! What the hell's the rush eh?"

Ward looked at Laguna as if he was impressed. "It's on us tonight. Relax and stay awhile."

Laguna stood flabbergasted by his friend's actions. They'd never walked out on him before. Suddenly he heard a soft voice come from behind him.

"May I?"

Laguna's heart stopped and his blood ran cold. Slowly he turned around to see Julia standing before him; her brown eyes gazing into his. Laguna was hypnotized by her beauty and was having trouble coming up with coherent thoughts.

"Aaahh…" Not able to say anything, Laguna nodded for her to sit and hobbled over to the other side of the booth to give her room.

Julia took a few steps then looked up to Laguna again. "Did I interrupt anything?"

"N-no, not at all! Please, sit down." Laguna sat down first then let his mind start to race. _Oh man, it's really her! What do I do? Ward, Kiros, help! What do I say? Oh man she is beautiful…_

"_What's this guy thinking,"_ Squall wondered.

Julia giggled slightly then took a seat next to him. Seeing how he had limped away from her, she wondered if he was alright.

"You ok now?"

"Yea, I'm fine now."

"How's your leg?"

L-leg? Oh this!? I-it's ok, it's fine now. It happens all the time when I get nervous." Laguna mentally slapped himself for saying that out loud.

"Were you nervous?"

"Oh my God yes…I mean, yea sort of. I'm still kinda…"

"You can relax. You don't have to be nervous around me."

"Oh sorry."

"Say…" Julia started to say before she leaned in real close to Laguna. "Would you like to talk somewhere more private? I have a room here…"

"In your room!" Laguna exclaimed.

"Yes. It's pretty hard to talk here with everyone listening in. If you'd like to, please come by. I've always wanted to talk to you." She noticed Laguna hesitate to say anything and frowned a little. "You don't want to?"

"Of course I do!"

Julia's smile reappeared as she stood up. "Then I'll go ahead and wait for you. Ask for my room at the front desk, ok?"

She nodded goodbye to Laguna then walked off towards the stairs. Laguna watched her the whole time and caught her look back towards him just as she got to the top step. Laguna's heart raced and mind both raced out of control.

_Am I dreaming? No, this can't be a dream. Julia wants to talk to me...and just the two of us, I can't believe it!_

"_This has got to be a dream but it seems too weird and real. Damn, this guy talks to himself too much."_ Squall thought.

Laguna started walking towards the steps, everyone watching him as he moved. He looked over and saw Ward and Kiros give him four thumbs up with huge grins running across their faces. Laguna nodded back to them then made his way up the steps.

_I always screw up by talking about myself too much. It's always been like that. But not tonight! Tonight, I'm all ears for Julia!_

Laguna walked up to the front desk and rang the bell. A woman came out from the office behind the desk.

"May I help you sir?"

"Yes, I'm looking for J-J-Julia's room?"

"Ah yes, I've been expecting you. Let me show you to Julia's room."

Laguna followed the woman to the elevator. Julia's room was located on the twentieth floor, the top floor of the hotel were all the sweets and penthouses were located. She pointed to Julia's door then walked off, leaving Laguna all alone in the hallway. He took a deep breath then knocked on her door. A moment later the door opened and there stood Julia.

"Come in, please."

Laguna walked in and stood in the middle of the room, not sure what to do.

"Thanks for coming."

"No…n-not at all. Thanks for inviting me. I'm Laguna by the way, Laguna Loire."

"It's nice to finally meet you Laguna, I'm Julia Heartily."

Laguna smiled and tried not to laugh. "I know who you are, everybody does. You're the best piano player in Deling City and probably Galbadia."

"Well I don't know about that but thank you. Please, have a seat and make yourself comfortable."

Laguna look around then decided to sit down on the bed. _That might give her the wrong idea._ He quickly got up and then walked over to a chair on the other side of the room then noticed he was sitting too far away from her. So her got up and walked a little closer to her then just sort of stood there looking lost and confused. Julia watched all of this then laughed and shook her head. This caused Laguna to smile and relax a little bit.

"You look lost?"

"No, it's not that. It's just that I'm a really big fan of yours so I'm really nervous."

"So that's why you come to hear me play so often?"

Laguna was shocked. He'd never thought that someone like Julia would ever notice someone like him.

"You…you saw me?"

"Yes, of course. You were always smiling while listening right?" Julia walked a little closer to him then continued. "You have beautiful eyes, though they look a bit scared now. Don't worry; I'm not going to pluck'em and eat'em. I just want to talk, gazing into those beautiful eyes." She let their eyes linger on each other for another moment then turned and walked over to the small kitchen she had in her sweet. "Would you like a drink? Wine perhaps?"

"Wine sounds great," Laguna answered.

Squall saw the scene start to fade away into blackness then come right back. It was Laguna and Julia conversing with each other. Julia sat on the bed while Laguna stood in front of her talking about this and that. Their wine glasses were empty at this point and they both seemed to be intensely focusing on the other. Julia in particular, she seemed to just be lost in Laguna's eyes as he rambled on. "Yeah I signed up for the army at the age of eighteen and I'm twenty-one now. I don't like the fighting too much but you get to travel, ya know? Seeing new places n' stuff. And it's fun, cause Ward and Kiros are always with me. I met them while I was in basic training. Hey, we should all go out drinking sometime! Whaddya say? Wait, how old are you again?"

"I'm twenty-four."

"Great! So you can definitely come too then!"

Laguna thought for a second and tried to remember what he'd been talking about. "And uh…what was I talking about. Oh yea, so I want to quit the army soon and become a journalist! So I can tell people about all the things I've seen on my travels."

"_Well I guess the wine kicked in because he's definitely loosened up a bit."_ Squall commented.

"So like, the other day, one of my articles made the reader's column. Pretty cool, huh?"

Julia smiled and nodded to Laguna. "I'm happy for you."

"So then I….yikes, I'm talking too much again. Sorry about that." Laguna stopped talking and looked into Julia's eyes.

"Yes?"

"So tell me about yourself. Like what are your hopes and dreams for the future?"

Julia stood and walked over to the window of her room. It provided an incredible view of the city, especially the city square. Laguna walked over towards her, just close enough to smell the scent of her perfume.

"I want to sing. Not just play the piano but sing too."

"That's great! I'd really love to hear it."

"But I can't, I'm no good at writing lyrics."

"Hmm…That's got to be tough. I'm willing to bet you have a beautiful voice too."

Julia suddenly turned to face him. "But thanks to you, I think I can come up with something."

"Thanks to me…?"

"Yes. The many faces you've shown me. All those times you came to see me play, I always watched you too. Times when you were hurt or worried…or felt pain deep inside of you. Your smile, your face, your eyes…you really showed me something. I think I can come up with a song."

Laguna walked a little closer to her. They were inches apart at this point.

"Wow…I must be dreaming," Laguna whispered.

Julia smiled then took Laguna's hand and pinched it. Laguna winced slightly but never pulled his hand away.

"Now you know your not dreaming." Julia said.

They looked at each other for a few more moments before Laguna looked away. Being here with Julia was like being in Heaven but Laguna knew he'd be called away soon and then he'd have to leave her.

"I should go. I've wanted to meet you and talk to you for the longest time and I will never forget this night but Galbadia's wars will call me away again. Thank you for inviting me up here."

Laguna started to make his way towards the door but felt a hand reach out and grab his arm. He turned to see Julia looking up into his eyes, a lonely and pleading look on her face.

"Stay…stay with me tonight. I know you'll have to leave in the morning but just for tonight, let's forget everything that's outside that door. You're an amazing person and I don't want to lose you yet. Please stay."

Laguna looked into her eyes and knew he couldn't say no to her. He could feel with certainty that Julia was one of those rare types of women that could change a man into a better person. Never in his whole life had Laguna ever felt so at peace then at this moment right now.

"Ok."

Julia leaned in and wrapped both of her arms around Laguna. Laguna wrapped his arms around her then used his right hand to tilt her chin up to his face. Just as he leaned in to kiss her the scene faded out, leaving Squall in darkness again.

It faded back in to the same room the next morning. Laguna stood next to the bed and was putting his BDU shirt back on. He then turned to the bed where Julia now laid, still asleep. He gently stroked her hair and forehead, trying to wake her as tenderly as he could. She stirred slightly before waking up and smiling at Laguna. He smiled back then leaned in and gave her a kiss.

"I have to go. I have to meet up with Ward and Kiros then report to headquarters for new deployment orders."

Julia slowly nodded. "Can we meet again? I'd really like to see you more?"

"I can't think of anything I want more. As soon as I'm done, I will come back for you."

Laguna gave her one last kiss then turned and left Julia's room. The scene faded to black once again for Squall.

* * *

"Next stop, Wolfsburg," came in over the PA system.

Squall awoke to find him self lying on the ground, Selphie and Zell standing over him. He quickly stood up then rubbed his temples trying to fend off the last of the dizziness he had.

"We were all asleep?"

Zell shrugged. "Maybe someone released some sleeping gas? SeeD does have its fair share of enemies. Could someone be on to our identities already?"

"_Maybe…better be careful."_ Squall thought.

Selphie started to check the room out. "Are we missing anything? Are you guys ok?"

"I don't think anything is missing." Squall answered. He walked over to the door to their room and tried the handle. It was still locked and didn't look like it had been tampered with. "The lock's still good." He added.

"What a relief!" Selphie exclaimed. She walked over to the couch and took a seat. "Boy, I had such a nice dream!"

Squall scoffed. _I had a dream too…it wasn't nice though, it was messed up. I dreamt I was a fucking moron…_

The PA systems notice tone ringed though the train again. "We will be arriving in Wolfsburg shortly. For those getting off, please be sure you have all of your belongings."

"But seriously, Sir Laguna was so cool!" Selphie declared.

Zell did a double take at Selphie's comment. "Hey, there was a Laguna in my dream too! He was a Galbadian soldier during the invasion of Timber, right!?"

"Laguna, Ward….and Kiros," Squall finished.

Zell looked absolutely perplexed. "Huh? That's it…we must have had the same dream."

All three SeeDs stood silently frozen at the realization. Having the same dream was not physically possible and Squall knew of no magic that could cause such results.

Selphie walked over and unlocked the door to the room. "There's no way to understand this."

Squall nodded. "Agreed. We'll put this incident on hold. I'll report it to the Headmaster once we get back to Garden."

"Good idea." Zell commented. "We should be stopping shortly. Here we go guys…psyche your selves up!"

Ten minutes later the train pulled into the Timber International Train Station and came to a halt. Dozen of passengers exited, providing the three SeeDs with excellent cover to blend in with. Each of the SeeD's exited holding a small duffle bag with personal belongings and spare clothing.

Looking around, Squall started to take in Wolfsburg. It was a large city, far more crowded and congested then Garden or Balamb City. Wolfsburg was a big industrial metropolis, loaded with factories, refineries and huge warehouses. It was perfect for this since a hundred or so railroads leading in and out of the city provided ample transportation for all the goods made within the city. It was divided up into three main parts. To the north were the residential and commercial areas of the city. It was made up of mostly homes, stores, malls and shops. To the south were all the industrial parks, refineries and warehouse districts. Most of the railroads, including the station they were presently at, ran though that part of the city. To the west were the governing bodies and military bases, all of which were run by the Galbadians.

Squall immediately signaled for them to walk over to the steps leading down onto one of the streets of the city. Then he turned to address his team mates.

"Ok, our first priority is to meet up with our contact. From there we can meet up with the rest of the group and get our gear back. Remember, this place is under Galbadian control. We are to avoid Galbadian troops, Timber military and Wolfsburg local police. We take defensive action only on my command. Our contact is supposed to be standing right next to a small pet store called _Al's Pet Shop_.

Selphie and Zell both agreed then turned back towards the city. They made their way down the steps then blended into a crowd of hundreds of people.

* * *

**NOTES**

Not too much to state with this chapter. Again just keeping up with as the realism by having them go into Timber unarmed with assumed identities of college students. Also, this was the first Laguna dream sequence. Hope ya liked it. Apologies for taking so long to update but I had the holidays in and working lots of extra overtime hours as well as working on my own original story. I'm almost half way down the book and I really wanna finish it before the summer rolls around.


	12. The Forrest Owls

**Chapter 12**

**The Forest Owls**

Monday, May 9th, 2217NE

1:30pm

Squall searched the area, looking for _Al's Pet Shop_. Selphie and Zell stood behind him, looking in different directions.

"Found it," Zell stated. He was pointing over toward a group of shops thirty yards ahead of them.

Squall nodded and signaled for them to move towards it. As they got closer, Squall spotted a younger, slightly overweight man standing by the off to the right of the pet shop. He was wearing green pants, a white t-shirt with a sleeveless yellow vest over it and a blue wool cap. As they started to walk towards him, the young man spotted them then looked away quickly. They walked right up to him and stood there silently with passive looks on their faces. The young man looked nervously between the three of them then cleared his throat.

"The forests of Timber sure have changed." He tried to say it as casually as he could but it was evident that he was nervous.

"But the owls are still around." Squall responded.

The young man's eyes shot wide open and a big smile spread across his face like wildfire. "I'm Watts; it's great to meet you guys! This way guys! Please follow me."

They followed Watts down the street to another huge train yard full of locomotives on holding tracks. They continued to follow him through the yard until they came upon a large yellow colored train parked on one of the holding tracks. Watts walked up to the side of the train and knocked three times, paused for a moment, then knocked two more times. Another second later the door opened and Watts signaled for them to follow him in.

The inside of the train was pretty standard with metallic walls and doors painted green and grey. The walls were lined with posters, charts, maps and schedules, probably in an attempt to use the space provided as wisely as possible. He also noticed that a decent amount of the train had been reinforced with steel plating to serve as armor. The room they stood in now was located at the front of the train and served as a sort of main hall. Off to Squall's right, a set of steps led up to another door which he guessed led off to the rest of the train. There was the entrance he'd just come through and another door that had the term "Conference Room" etched into a sign that hung from it as well as one other door that led off to the very front of the train.

Watts walked over to the conference room and knocked on the door. It opened and out walked two men, both older then Watts. One was a tall man with short brown hair, cut down to a buzz cut length. He had a slim, lightly muscular build like a long distance runner and wore dark blue jeans and a green t-shirt. The other man was shorter and wore blue jean shorts with a blue fleece pullover. The taller man stepped forward to address the SeeDs.

"I'm Dylan Hall. I'm the leader and co-founder of the Forest Owls. I mostly handle all the financial matters of the group. The tactical stuff is handled by my second in command as well as the other co-founder of the group. You'll meet her later."

"I'm Sgt. Squall Leonhart, the team leader. This is Pvt. Selphie Tilmitt and Pvt. Zell Dintch. You may call us by our first names to keep things simpler." Squall and Dylan nodded to each other again.

"You already met Watts, he's our youngest member." Dylan then pointed to the man in the blue fleece who Squall noticed was eying him and Zell and Selphie up. "This is Zone. Zone is our third in command. He and Watts are in charge of reconnaissance and intelligence gathering."

Zone walked up to Squall and extended his hand to shake. Squall looked down at his hand then back up to Zone and gave him a slight nod as a greeting. Zone slowly lowered his hand then walked over to Selphie who took Zone's hand and shook it. Zell wiped his hand off on his shorts then extended it to shake. But Zone walked right by him and stood next to Dylan. Zell quickly lowered his hand to try to play it off but saw Selphie biting her lip trying not to laugh.

"Alright, first things first. We need to get you your weapons and gear. I'm going to get back into the conference room and make a few calls to see if your stuff is here yet. Zone, I want you to get Princess up and introduce her to the SeeDs then all of you can meet up with me in the conference room."

Dylan walked into the conference room and closed the door behind him, leaving the SeeDs with Watts and Zone. Selphie and Zell exchanged quick glances, Zell mouthing the word "Princess" to Selphie with a sarcastic look on his face. Selphie grinned and put her hand over her mouth to keep to it from showing.

Zone immediately turned to Watts and pointed to him."Watts, go wake up the Princess."

"Sir, the Princess is taking one of her serious naps and requested that we send the leader of the SeeD team to meet with her directly." Watts replied.

Zone turned to Squall with a nervous look on his face. "Hey Squall, sorry, but could you go wake Princess. She requested that you wake her. I would go but she hurt both me and Watts last time we wondered into her room to wake her up. She's in the last room down the hall; it's past the control room and the male bunk room."

The look on Squall's face turned sour. He knew he was supposed to obey orders because they were his clients but Squall and his team were elite mercenaries, not a bunch of servants hired to run errands for these half-ass rebels.

"So you hired us to run errands for you? Like waking up other members of your group that should have damn-well been awake already? Well?" Squall crossed his arms and waited for some sort of response.

Zone to a step back; he looked shocked and scared at the same time. He put up his hands, waving them in protest. "A-are you angry? We don't want you mad at us!"

"Oh Hyne, give me strength." Squall muttered under his breath. "Ok, I'll do it, but this is the last time for this kind of thing."

"Absolutely! What ever you say. I'd go with you but…" Zone trailed off then bent over in pain, grabbing his stomach. "Ouu, Owww, my stomach."

"Very convenient." Squall commented. He turned and looked at the others who shrugged at him. Zell motioned with his head to go down the hallway and get their second in command. As Squall walked past him, Zell grabbed him by the arm and leaned in by his ear.

"These guys don't seem to have it all together."

"I know." He walked by Zell and entered the hallway.

The hallway was as plainly arranged as the rest of the train. Squall could hear voices coming from the first door on his left. The door was open and he peeked in as he walked by. Four men sat in various places around what was the control room. They stopped talking when they noticed Squall then looked at each other, then looked back at him.

"SeeD."

They all seemed to relax at the same time then turned and went back to what they were doing. Squall continued down the hallway and got to the next room. Inside was a large room full of bunks and small closets. Another male who could not have been any older than nineteen sat on one of the beds reading through a magazine. He didn't hear Squall and never looked up. Squall decided not to bother the guy and moved on to the last room on the left. He was going to knock but remembered that Zone said she was asleep so he figured he should just let him self in.

He opened the door and walked into what he swore was the most feminine room he had ever seen. The entire room was pink. The walls were painted a light shade of pink while a carpet lay on the floor that was a slightly darker shade of pink. It also had pink drawers and a pink pull-out bed with pink pillows and pink blanket. The room was the size of the men's bunk room. Squall figured she must be the only female member of the group so she got her own room all to herself.

"Good Hyne that's a lot of pink."

He moved further towards the bed and took notice of the young girl who currently lay asleep under her blanket. She was curled up into a tight little ball to keep herself warmer. Squall walked around to the side of the bed and started to reach out to wake her up but suddenly stopped when he saw her face.

It was her, the girl from the SeeD Ball. The girl he'd danced with and thought he would never see again.

_Oh shit..._

Squall's mind started to race and panic almost set in. A flood of familiar feelings that originated at the SeeD Ball rushed through his body. Not knowing what to do, he pulled his hand away from her and started to back away from the bed. It was at this point that a loud roar from another locomotive's horn thundered out and reverberated through the room. The girl stirred slightly then opened her eyes and saw Squall standing a few feet from her bed. She immediately sat up the second she recognized who he was.

"Hey! It's you, ya know, from the party. So…does that mean…you're a SeeD!?"

"Yea," Squall muttered weakly. Forcing himself to get it together, Squall took a few steps forward and cleared his throat then introduced himself. "I'm Sgt. Squall Leonhart, the team leader. There are two other SeeDs with me."

The girl threw her arms up into the air in a gesture of victory. "Yessssss! SeeD is here!" She jumped out of the bed and ran over to Squall then jumped up into his arms, wrapping her legs round him as she did so. Not knowing what else to do, Squall caught her and held her tight. She was really light; Squall guessed she weighed no more than 110 pounds. Her hair smelled heavenly; it had a light scent of lavender to it. For a moment he simply held her, listening to her breathe and taking in the tight hug he was receiving. Memories of the ball came flooding back to him and he instantly remembered how close she'd been to him while they slow danced. Squall ripped his mind back to the present and forced himself to snap out of but still put her down slowly and gently then stepped back a foot or two.

"Hey, take it…easy." Just then Squall noticed what this girl had decided to wear to bed.

Standing in front of him was a raven haired beauty that was wearing _nothing_ but a tight black tank top and a pair of white PJ shorts that were very tight and extremely short. It was radically obvious to Squall from the way that the clothing hugged her body that she currently wore nothing under them. He again found him self unable to look away from her tight curves. Squall continued to stare for a moment then realized he was still gawking. He quickly averted his eyes down and to his right, placing his gaze upon a pile of clothing on the floor. The pile turned out to be more undergarments and lingerie. Squall quickly averted his eyes elsewhere and settled his sights on the wall next to him

The girl must have realized that she was only two articles of clothing away from being completely naked. She turned a bright shade of crimson then held up her finger to signal Squall to give her a minute. She ran through a pink curtain on the wall into what Squall guessed was her own bathroom. A few minutes later she emerged wearing a pair of black combat boots, blue denim shorts and a blue sleeveless duster over her black tank top. She also had long blue arm warmers over both her fore arms and a black ribbon tied around her left upper arm.

"Sorry about before, it's just that I'm so happy you guys are here! I've been sending requests to Garden constantly, but nothing…I'm so glad I spoke to Cid directly!"

"Oh…" Squall said, walking over towards her. "So it was the Headmaster you were looking for at the party?"

She turned to him still smiling. "You know Seifer?" She noticed his demeanor change instantly.

Squall scoffed. "Yea, I know him."

"Well he's the one who introduced me to Headmaster Kramer. Cid is a really kind man. I really didn't think SeeD would come out to help a measly little group like us. But after explaining our situation to him and another general in charge of you guys, he gave the go ahead right away."

_Must have been Crace._

The girl let out another giggle of happiness. "Now that you guys are here, we'll be able to carry out all sorts of plans! I know we can free Wolfsburg with your help."

Squall shook his head. _Yea…three rookie SeeDs are gonna help some small amateur rebel group drive out the army of Galbadians that occupy this city. No doubts on this end._ "Hey look, I'm gonna go back up front with the others."

"Ok, I'll come with you," she replied cheerfully.

They started to move towards the hallway when she stopped and turned around. "Um Squall, is he here?"

"Who?"

"Seifer."

"No, Seifer is not a SeeD…" Squall walked around her to get out to the hallway then stopped to face her again. "And he never will be," Squall hissed icily.

The girl was taken back by the way Squall had answered her. Was there some bad blood between them? Squall seemed to get angry with her just for mentioning his name.

"Oh," she replied.

Squall started to walk away when the girl remembered she hadn't introduced herself yet. "By the way, my name is Rinoa."

Rinoa stuck her hand out to shake and Squall, breaking one of his cardinal rules, took it and shook it back. Squall's hand was bigger than Rinoa's and was rough and callused from lifting weights and handling Revolver. He gently took Rinoa's hand and immediately noticed how her skin felt soft and smooth. He caught himself getting lost on her again and shook it off. He didn't know why he had shaken her hand; it was something he only did for superior officers back at Garden.

Rinoa noticed the anger in Squall's eyes fade as he shook her hand. "Very pleased to meet you Squall."

"It's nice to meet you Rinoa."

Rinoa leaned in a little closer, dropping her hands down to her knees. "SeeD members dance quite well, don't they?"

"All SeeD Special Forces are required to learn dance technique. You may be required to approach a target inconspicuously at a dance party…there may be missions requiring this type of subterfuge. It's expected of us to learn various skills."

Rinoa frowned slightly at Squall's remark. "Oh…so it's work related then. That's too bad."

_What does she mean by that?_

Just then, a dog walked out from behind the curtains of Rinoa's bathroom. It walked over to Squall and sniffed him a little then walked over to Rinoa.

"Hey there, let me introduce you." Rinoa stood back up and scratched the dog behind the ears. "Squall, this is my partner in crime, Angelo. He's a Border Collie. He's really smart and very protective of me."

"Great." Squall leaned over and let Angelo sniff his hand then rubbed him behind the ears a little bit.

Rinoa thought that was odd; Angelo never let strangers pet him like that. "That's unusual, he's never that friendly to people he doesn't know." Rinoa leaned down and gave Angelo a peck on the top of her head. "Ok Angelo, you stay here and be a good boy, I've got to do a few things." Rinoa stood up again and nodded to Squall that it was ok to go.

Squall and Rinoa walked back out into the hallway and made their way down towards the front room. As they walked by the control room Rinoa peeked her head in and waved.

"Hey guys," she said cheerfully.

"Hello Princess!" they all said in unison.

"Why do they call you that?" Squall asked.

Rinoa chuckled slightly. "It's a nickname they gave me. I'm the only girl in the Forest Owls so I get special treatment and privileges that the guys don't get."

"Like your own room for instance."

"Exactly."

Squall looked at her for another second turned away. He didn't know enough yet to figure Rinoa out. If she was the second in command of this entire resistance group then that had to mean she was both physically and mentally strong, at least some of the time. But she also had this immature, naïve and spoiled side to her that worried Squall. This whole group just seemed to give off an aura of inexperience that could easily get both them and the SeeDs killed. He could already tell that the Forest Owls were in over their heads. Especially against ruthless killers like the Galbadians.

Squall opened the door to the front room and found that Dylan had rejoined the rest of the group. He walked down to the others, Rinoa right behind him. When Zell looked up and saw Rinoa, he immediately recognized her. He turned to Squall with a stunned look on his face.

Squall quickly waved it off, he didn't want the SeeD ball to get brought up. "Rinoa, these are the other two SeeDs, Zell and Selphie."

"It's nice to meet both of you. I really appreciate SeeD coming to help us out." Rinoa stated.

"Hey there," Zell said.

"Hi! Nice to meet ya," Selphie exclaimed.

Dylan cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. "Squall, I've just received word that your gear has arrived. It's been stashed in one of the empty warehouses a few blocks down. The area is only lightly patrolled by Galbadian forces so we shouldn't have any trouble retrieving them. I suggest we leave now."

"Agreed."

"Then let's get going. We've got a van outside."

Everyone followed Dylan outside where an old, beat-up olive green van was waiting. Rinoa, Dylan, Watts, Zone and the SeeDs hopped into the van, cramming them selves in. Zone, Dylan and Rinoa climbed into the front bench, Watts and the SeeDs stayed in the back. The van only had two side windows in the front so it would provide good cover on their way back. Dylan started the van up and put it into gear before pulling out of the train yard and heading west. The warehouse that had all the weapons and gear was only a few minutes away.

Watts leaned over into the front seat, chatting with the others about what jobs could be done now that the SeeDs were here. In the back however, Squall, Selphie and Zell sat quietly, all wondering if they could really make a difference. Zell looked up suddenly and moved in closer to Squall.

"I bet your mind is racing right about now. I mean what are the chances that your first client is also the same girl that you danced with at the ball? I'm not big on superstition but this has to be some higher power at work, like fate or something."

Squall immediately thought back to what Ifrit had said to him, about missing something. And also back to the cryptic messages from General Crace and Cid. Although all of this was starting to spook him a bit, Squall wasn't about to let Zell, Ifrit or anyone else cloud his judgment or cause him to start thinking about unrealistic nonsense.

"Zell, has anyone ever told you that you open your mouth way too much? Besides, it doesn't mean anything so just drop it."

"What are you guys talking about?" Selphie asked.

"Squall danced with Rinoa at the SeeD Ball and now he's working for her. I think its fate. Squall, you should try to talk to her man. I saw how you looked at her back at the ball so don't even try to deny it. Plus, she's smoking hot!"

"You should try to talk to her Squall. Maybe then you wouldn't such a grumpy guy." Selphie commented.

"We're on a mission ok? I'm pretty sure that Garden wouldn't appreciate one of their SeeDs fraternizing with a client. We're professionals so start acting like it. On top of all that, I don't have any Hyne damned feelings for her. So drop it!"

"Fine, fine." Zell said, holding his hands up apologetically. "But she won't be your client forever."

"Zell, shut up," Squall hissed.

Zell grinned and looked over at Selphie who covered her mouth, trying not to giggle out loud. Squall sighed and shook his head, dropping it into his right hand.

Ten minutes later the van reached the warehouse district and pulled in. It was comprised of a dozen or so large warehouses wrapped around one main road that led straight through the district with smaller roads leading off to individual warehouses.

Dylan turned back to the SeeDs. "The empty, abandoned warehouses are in the back of the district. Your equipment is located in warehouse seven."

"How close are we?" Squall asked.

"It's right around the corner," Rinoa replied.

"This whole district used to be full of life and commerce." Watts commented.

"But the Badians chased out all the businesses." Zone added bitterly.

Rinoa reached over and patted Zone on the back. "Don't worry Zone, someday, Timber will be free again. Now that we have SeeD, we can't lose, right Squall?"

Both Rinoa and Dylan turned to Squall for his reaction. Squall looked up at them then quickly turned away. He couldn't make a promise like that. SeeD didn't care about Timber's freedom and neither did Squall really. Garden had to know that sending three rookie SeeDs off to Timber wasn't going to bring the Galbadian occupation down. Squall had guessed that Garden had really sent them because Cid had personally approved the request from Rinoa. But Cid wasn't naïve and Squall knew it. Cid had to of known that the most three SeeDs could do against an entire city of Galbadians was to cause mild chaos within the Galbadian ranks through guerrilla tactics.

Rinoa and Dylan picked up on this and exchanged glances. Dylan shrugged then turned back around. Rinoa pointed to the warehouse off to the left.

"We're here," she said.

Warehouse nine sat off by itself, the last building in the corner of the lot. The van slowly pulled up to the structure and came to a stop. Squall opened the back doors and ordered Zell and Selphie to come out with him. They stood and studied the warehouse, its design and its grounds. Except for them, the place was completely empty, vacant of any other life.

"It's too quiet." Zell said.

"And it seems too easy." Squall added. "We'll have them pull the van around back and wait there. Zell, you're the expert with your hands and feet so you'll be the one to go in. Selphie and I will take the sides of the building and cover you through the windows. If anything happens-"

"I have a better idea." Rinoa interrupted.

Squall turned to see Rinoa and Dylan standing there, looking slightly annoyed.

"Since your working for us, I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't just go off and make plans and decisions without running them by us first."

Rinoa gave Squall a perplexed look. She had been so happy when SeeD arrived and she'd been absolutely ecstatic to see Squall. The time they had shared that night at the dance had stayed with her and she'd be lying to herself if she said she hadn't thought of him. But he was acting like a different person, like he didn't respect them. He was acting like he didn't even want to be here.

_What happened to the guy I danced with at the ball?_

Squall took a few steps toward her and cocked up one eyebrow. "It's our gear in there so leave this up to us, _we're_ professionals."

Rinoa picked up on his tone and cocked one of her eyebrows up. "Well I think _we_ know this area a little better than you do. We have reliable sources and we know your things are here. There is no ambush."

"Look, we don't have time to argue…"

Rinoa cut him off. "Then don't. We're your clients and I say we are all going into that warehouse together. There a two large sets of garage doors so we can pull the van in. That is an order."

Rinoa and Squall stood silently for a moment eying each other up. After another second went by Squall gave in and looked away. He knew that she was making a mistake but she was right; she was the client and they had to do what she said.

"Ok, fine. Whatever you say ma'am."

Squall turned to Zell and motioned for him to run over and open one of the garage doors. Zell ran over to the large garage door and noticed there was an old rusted pad lock attached to it. Using his GF enhanced strength, Zell threw a powerful thrust kick that snapped the rusted lock in two. It fell to the ground and he slid the door open then motioned for the van to move in. The van pulled into the warehouse slowly. Squall and Selphie followed, watching the rear as they entered the garage. Once they were all in, Zell slid the door back down.

The inside of the warehouse was a mess. Old machinery, plywood, boxes and broken glass were scatted everywhere. On top of that, everything was covered in a heavy layer of dust and cob webs. In the back building were two floors of small offices.

Rinoa pointed up to one of the second floor offices. "You're gear is there."

She gave Squall a confident look then walked by him towards the set of rusted spiral stairs. Squall, Zell and Selphie followed Rinoa along with Dylan. Watts and Zone stayed on the first floor to keep an eye out for Galbadian troops.

Everyone followed Rinoa into the office on the right. Inside were several desks arranged in two separate rows with chairs laid strung about randomly. Lying side by side in the back of the office were three large duffle bags.

Rinoa leaned to her left and put her hand on her hip. "Here's your things. Pretty good for a small time resistance group like us." She gave Squall another pissed off look.

Squall turned around to say something back but Zell jumped in front of him before he could.

"We don't think your small time or unimportant. We just didn't think that it would be this easy for a group like yours to sneak our things in. All of this felt a little too easy."

Rinoa and Dylan exchanged looks of astonishment. They couldn't believe what they were hearing. Before either one of them could say anything to the SeeDs, Squall and the others had already turned to go through the bags.

Selphie and Zell opened their bags first. Selphie checked her utility belt and nunchuck then pulled out her G17 sidearm and ammo. Behind her bag was another case. She opened it up and revealed an M249 SAW machine gun and several drums of belt fed ammo. "Party time..." she whispered just loud enough for Zell and Squall to hear her. Zell gave Squall a concerned look but Squall simply shrugged. That was just Selphie; cute and petite and on the Garden Festival committee and at the same time a fucking lunatic obsessed with explosives, RPGs and heavy firepower.

Zell looked inside his bag and found his belt, his fighting gloves, fighting knives, P90 submachine gun and G17 sidearm. He gave the weapon a quick check then stashed it back in his bag and zipped it up.

Squall opened up his bag and pulled Revolver out of its scabbard. He looked it over for a moment then sheathed it again. Also in his bag was his G34, M416 carbine, gunblade belts, combat knife, ammunition and duty belt. Below all that was the .22 caliber pistol with attachable suppressor.

Dylan saw Squall's weapon and immediately recognized it. "You're a gunblader!? I didn't even think people used those things anymore."

Squall turned to him. "The gunblade isn't used much anymore but it's still devastating in the hands of someone who knows how to use it."

Dylan turned to Rinoa and gave her an impressed look. Dylan knew that gunblades were indeed incredible weapons and that modern soldiers didn't use them unless they knew what they were doing.

_Where have I seen that before? That exact gunblade..._

Rinoa played it off and just snorted back. She wasn't impressed by Squall's big knife with a gun on it and decided to give Squall a piece of her mind.

"We're not as helpless as you guys might think. We've been operating successfully for three years now with out the help of the great SeeDs. I know the politics of this city. The Galbadians know that there are dozens of resistance groups operating within the city. But they've occupied the country for so long now that they come to accept and even expect a certain degree of resistance from the Timber people. We may seem too relaxed for you guys but that's because we know what we are doing."

Squall stood and turned to her. "So does that mean that the Badians don't investigate and go after resistance groups they come across?"

"No, but they're not looking for groups like us as actively as they used too. They've been here for like twenty years now. We know what we're doing and we know our way around. I have reliable intelligence coming in that lets me know what the Badians are up to and where and when they patrol. So I'd like a little more respect from you guys while you're here working with us."

Rinoa and Squall continued to eye each other up silently for another moment before Zell walked up and got in between them.

"Look Rinoa, the three of us have respect for you guys, we're just doing our jobs."

Selphie jumped up from her bag to speak. "We were hired to aid you guys in liberating Wolfsburg and to protect both you and Dylan personally right?"

"Right." Rinoa said.

"Well that's all Squall meant. We didn't know if this place was empty or if it was an ambush so we wanted to keep our two VIP's outside."

Rinoa turned to Squall before she spoke. "Fine then. But I want your leader here to understand that Dylan and I are competent enough to make good, tactical decisions. If I say your gear is in this warehouse and it's safe to go in and get it then you can take that as gospel."

Squall was fuming. It was bad enough the three of them get assigned to this for a first mission but to take orders from a girl who thought she knew everything there was to know about dealing with the Badians was even worse. Squall knew the Galbadians were always playing for keeps. If they weren't actively banging down your door to kill you that meant they were only biding their time for the perfect strike. Squall knew Rinoa's heart was in the right place but her attitude would get someone in her group killed eventually. Squall opened his mouth to say something else but the sound of foot steps running up the stairs grabbed everyone's attention.

A second later Watts and Zone came into view with panicked looks on their faces. Watts was out of breath and sucking wind so Zone spoke first.

"Rinoa, there's a Galbadian humvee driving around outside. They're checking the warehouses next to us. It looks like they're coming this way next!"

Dylan dropped his face into his hand. "They must be here looking for SeeD and the group that hired them."

Rinoa's jaw dropped. "What!? That's impossible! I was told that no one knew SeeD was with us. They couldn't have known this was the pick-up point."

Watts finally managed to catch his breath. "What do we do Rin?"

Watts, Dylan and Zone looked to Rinoa for a plan. Squall couldn't keep his grin contained any longer and joined in with the rest of them.

"Ok expert, what's the plan?" he asked.

Rinoa turned a bright shade of red. She couldn't believe this had happened after what she had just said. She was terribly embarrassed and even worse, totally panicked because she didn't know what to do. She began to bite the right side of her bottom lip; an old nervous habit of hers from childhood. They hadn't even brought any weapons with them, the SeeDs were the only ones armed. Most of the time they didn't need to carry weapons because their missions were more about blending in, gathering intelligence and spreading misinformation. She stood silently trying to think of a plan but her mind was racing.

Squall saw the panic in her eyes and figured now would be a good time to step up. "If you don't mind Princess, I've got an idea. Watts, I want you and Zone to get our bags into the van then stay here with Dylan and Rinoa. If they get past us you'll at least have had time to slip out the back."

Squall turned to Selphie and Zell. "Primary weapons and magic only. We've got to take them out quickly and as quietly as possible. Their vehicle is a CUV-15 Warthog. Its armored and most have a mounted 50 caliber machine gun. We don't wanna tangle with that."

Both SeeDs nodded then went through their bags to gear up. Zell slipped on his fighting gloves and knives and Selphie took her nunchuck out of its sheath. Then they tossed their bags over to Watts and Zone. Everyone made their way down to the first floor and got to where they were supposed to be. As the three SeeDs walked over to one of the side doors, Squall looked up and made eye contact with Rinoa. She looked pissed, but more pissed at herself then Squall. After another second, she slowly shook her head then looked down at the floor.

The SeeDs got to the door and peeked out the windows to find the enemy troops. Out of nowhere a Galbadian humvee came from the back of the warehouse and drove right by Squall and the others. They all ducked below windows to stay out of sight.

The large Galbadian Warthog came to a stop in the front of the warehouse, off to the right of garage door. Squall signaled Selphie and Zell to follow him out then opened the door slowly and exited. They crept their way up to the front of the warehouse, taking cover behind the burned out shell of an old sedan. The doors of the humvee opened and out stepped four Galbadian soldiers.

"They're all riflemen, they've got no chargers. We need a distraction." Squall said. He tried to listen in on what they were saying.

"This is the area." one of them said.

"This is the last warehouse in this lot. The report states that a small group of rebels should be here picking up weapons for SeeDs." Another said.

The third one walked up to join in on the conversation. "I can't believe they actually got Garden to send SeeDs to help one of these half ass rebel groups."

"Garden will deny it of course."

The first one, a sergeant, raised his hand to get their attention. "Enough talk. Let's finish this sweep and get these fuckers. I'm looking forward to executing them."

Squall heard what the sergeant said last and felt his blood boil slightly.

_Why am I so pissed suddenly? I mean I know we were hired to help the Forest Owls and protect their top two but the thought of them hurting the Owls, of hurting Rinoa…_

Squall didn't know why but the thought of one of those soldiers putting their hands on her or hurting her in anyway enraged him. He couldn't figure out where these feelings were coming from. After all, he'd only just met her a few nights ago and it's not like he even liked her. He took a long, deep breath and slowly exhaled in an attempt to calm himself.

_I don't even find her that appealing. She's immature and a know-it-all. I don't like her…right?_

"Alright ladies, we clear this place out. Anyone inside dies." the sergeant ordered.

"Yes sir!" the other three stated in unison.

Squall's rage and imagination were both suddenly out of control. In his mind, a vivid scene played out like a runaway train. Rinoa on her knees, tears running down her cheeks, with the sergeant's gun to her head flashed through Squall's mind. All the other Owls lay dead around her, Rinoa bleeding from the beating she'd just received from the soldiers. Squall tried to block it out, to remain thinking logically. But his imagination was running on overdrive. He couldn't take the image of her being hurt. One final scene flashed through his mind, a scene with a laughing Galbadian sergeant putting his side arm to Rinoa's temple and pulling the trigger. The crack of the imaginary shot rang through his ears and suddenly Squall was on his feet, breaking cover, charging the four Galbadians head on.

Zell jumped up in shock. "Squall, what the hell?"

Squall charged the sergeant with his weapon drawn then took a running leap into the air. The Galbadians never saw the attack. The sergeant turned just in time to see Squall's blade strike him in the chest, cutting him wide open. He was dead before he hit the ground. The other three turned and panicked at the sight of their fallen commanding officer, causing them to hesitate. This gave Squall all the time he needed. He charged past the fallen sergeant and ran the second soldier through with Revolver before he had time to point his rifle at Squall. Ripping Revolver out of the soldier's body, Squall spun around and swung his gunblade at the third soldier, connecting with his neck. Squall's blade cut the soldier's head clean off.

The click of the fourth soldier's rifle being cocked reverberated through the air. Squall dropped low and charged a protect spell with his left hand. The fourth soldier managed to point his G36 and pulled the trigger. Squall raised his left hand just in time for the full metal jacket rounds of the assault rifle to connect with the shield of Squall's protect spell. The rounds hit the shield and fragmented into small pieces of shrapnel while the shield quickly changed from blue to yellow to orange and finally to red, signaling that it was about to dissipate. Squall thrust Revolver into the ground then brought his right hand up and launched a large fire spell towards the soldier. The fire ball sailed through the air and connected center mass with the soldier, hurling him to the ground. Squall grabbed his weapon and pulled it out of the ground then wordlessly walked over to the soldier and stabbed him through the chest. The soldier let out a low whimper then fell silent.

Winded, Squall stood silently for a moment then turned only to see Rinoa and Dylan looking blankly at him. They had watched everything from one of the windows and had walked out after it was over. Squall made eye contact with Rinoa and for a moment the whole world stopped. He saw many things in her eyes; astonishment, shock and even fear. And the fear bothered him. It bothered Squall that Rinoa was slightly afraid of him. And what bothered him more was that he had no idea why.

Zell came up and grabbed Squall's shoulder then shook him. "What the fuck was that supposed to be? What happened to quiet?"

Squall shook his head and looked away from him. This wasn't how he saw his first mission happening. The whole mission so far had been rocky and awkward and Squall caught himself doubting his ability to lead for just a second. He ignored the thought and turned back to Zell. "I don't know Zell so just forget it. Collect those G36's and spare mags off the dead soldiers, I'm sure the Forest Owls wouldn't mind the addition to their arsenal."

Zell signaled for Selphie to help him collect the weapons and ammo off the dead soldiers. Squall walked over to the garage door and opened it up then motioned for the van to pull out. Zone nodded then pulled out and stopped, waiting for everyone to get in.

"Ok get those weapons then get back into the van. Dylan and Rinoa, get into the van now. You two are VIPs and I can't protect you if you're out in the open."

Dylan nodded and got in but Rinoa walked over to Squall and leaned in real close to his ear so that she could whisper to him. "I saw them laughing Squall. Those soldiers said they were gonna kill us didn't they? You didn't want them to hurt us... to hurt me, did you?"

Squall took a step back and found Rinoa looking up into his eyes, burrowing into his soul. "How did you know…never mind. Lets just go."

Rinoa sighed and shook her head then ran over to the van and hopped in. Selphie and Zell followed with the rifles and mags and jumped in next. Squall took one last look around then jumped in and closed the door behind him. Zone hit the gas and the van took off, leaving the dead soldiers and their humvee behind.

**NOTES**

I made Angelo a guy instead of a girl. I can't remember if Angelo is a male or female in the game but I'm going with a male dog. This way Angelo serves as a trusty guy friend and body guard of sorts, looking out for Rinoa when he can.


	13. The Train Heist

**Chapter 13**

**The Train Heist**

Monday, May 9th 2217NE

4:45pm

The ride home had been a quiet one. All of the Forest Owls had sat up front and talked quietly amongst themselves. Not a word was said amongst the SeeDs in the back. Several times Squall had caught Rinoa glance back at him. Each time their eyes had met they both immediately looked away from each other. Squall dropped his head into both of his hands.

G_reat start Leonhart. First you get assigned to this half ass mission, which just happens to have the girl you danced with leading it. Then you manage to piss her off and then almost get yourself killed at the weapons pick-up._

The van pulled back into the train yard and pulled up to the train. Everyone got out except for Zone, who jumped into the driver's seat. Squall, Selphie and Zell grabbed their bags of gear and slung them over their shoulders then made their way up to the train. Squall made sure he stayed behind Rinoa and Watts. Dylan walked around to the driver's side and turned to Zone then pointed to a small garage.

"Stay with the van. We're gonna need it again in a few minutes."

Zone nodded then put the van into park. Dylan turned and made his way back up to the others.

Once they were all back on board, the group stopped right inside the entrance. The SeeDs put their things down and waited for new orders. Rinoa and Watts took a seat on the steps leading to the bunk rooms. Dylan turned his attention to Squall and spoke bluntly.

"Sergeant, I'd like you and one other SeeD to escort Rinoa, Zone and Watts out on a few important errands that need to be done. I want the remaining SeeD to stay here with me and the train. Since you're going out into public you'll have to leave your weapons here. We will keep them in the conference room. I'm sure that won't be a problem for elite SeeDs. That's an order."

With out saying another word or waiting for Squall's response, Dylan turned and walked off towards the guy's bunk room.

Squall knew both Rinoa and Dylan were a little taken back and disappointed with SeeD so far and didn't want to create and larger canyon of space between the two parties. Although he had been right about the pick up. The Owls had been so sure that there was no Badian presence, that no one would be coming. They hadn't listened to Squall when he'd been right; though not totally right because they hadn't been ambushed. A Galbadian patrol just happened to stumble across them. However the G-army soldiers got that info from somewhere and that worried Squall a bit. Squall turned to address Selphie and Zell.

"Selphie, you stay here with the train and stay armed. Zell and I will go with Rinoa and the others."

Selphie nodded then leaned down to open her bag. She slid her duty belt around her waist then took out her nunchuck and attached it to a special pair of straps on the back of her belt designed to hold the weapon in place. The she took out her pistol and loaded it before holstering it.

"Ready to rock and roll," she said cheerfully.

"Stay by Dylan at all times. Go." Squall said.

Squall turned to Rinoa and signaled that he and Zell where ready to go. Rinoa looked blankly at the two for a second then turned and exited the train with out another word, with Watts right behind her. Zell looked at Squall and shrugged then exited the train. Squall looked down to the floor and massaged his temples.

_Now we're running errands with them. I wonder if they even have a plan to free Wolfsburg or at least jump-start a rebellion?_

Squall heard Zell shout from outside.

"Come on Leonhart!"

Squall exited the train and saw Rinoa, Watts, Zone and Zell already in the van waiting for him. Squall jogged over to the sliding door and jumped in, closing it behind him. Zone hit the gas and the van took off.

Ten minutes later absolute silence engulfed the van as it sped down the highway. Watts and Zone were up front while Rinoa, Zell and Squall sat in the back of the van. The eerie silence was getting under Zell's skin. He always hated long quiet lengths of time. He especially didn't like being in awkward silences with his employer, it was detrimental to progress. They should have been chatting away at what he hoped would be a legitimate plan of attack on the Badians.

Zell looked to Squall to break the silence but only saw that Squall sat with his arms crossed looking at the floor of the van. Rinoa was no different, Zell saw that she also had her arms crossed and was looking out the back window of the van.

Not able to take it anymore, Zell spoke. "So, where are we going? What are these important errands we have to do? Is it surveillance of the Galbadian military base in the city or maybe of an important political figure?" Zell kept his eyes brows propped up in anticipation.

Watts and Zone both let out a half snort, half giggle at the same time. Rinoa turned and smiled politely at Zell then leaned in close to both him and Squall.

"We are going food shopping at a place called Green Plaza. It's like a large open square with dozens of large shops and stores. Even amateur rebel groups like the Forest Owls have to eat."

Zell's jaw dropped. He immediately turned to Squall who had dropped his arms and put his hands on his knees, his right eye twitching slightly. Zell could tell Squall was about to explode and say something really stupid. Thinking fast, Zell gave Squall's knee a slap catching him off guard then turned to Rinoa.

"That's a good point. Everyone's gotta eat. And its our duty to protect you." Zell changed the subject fast. "So, how long have you lived in Timber? How long have the Forest Owls been in business?"

"Well I moved to Timber when I was fifteen and linked up with Zone, Watts and Dylan when I was sixteen. Together, we started the Forest Owls."

"How many resistance groups would ya say exist in Wolfsburg?"

"Well I think there's close to 150 within the capital but there's more spread out all over Timber. But the Galbadians are very powerful in military terms and the resistance groups alone have never been enough. That's why we hoped that SeeD would come to our aid…"

Rinoa trailed off, letting her disappointment with SeeD so far show clearly in her voice. Squall picked up on her tone of voice but said nothing in response; it was not his job to make her feel better. Zell however, also noticed the sadness in her voice.

"So does you train have a name?" he asked.

Rinoa, Watts and Zone all laughed at the same time. Zone turned to answer Zell. "Not really. But I've always called it Shane. Shane the rebel train."

Zell's body shook as his laughter escaped his body. Zone was already laughing and it quickly spread to Watts and Rinoa. The only one who was still silent was Squall. He noticed how easy it was for Zell to interact and socialize with others. He simply asked them questions and told them one-liners. He laughed and joked with Rinoa so easily, and suddenly Squall found himself feeling a little angry and even slightly…jealous?

_I don't have any ties to these people except for the contract they have with Garden. So why am I pissed? Why is Zell's flirtation with Rinoa getting to me? We are not here to make friends but to conduct business and fulfill a contract. I'll make sure I remind Zell of that when we get to the market._

The van pulled into Green Plaza ten minutes later and came to a stop in one of the parking areas. The plaza itself was a large rectangular shaped open quad area lined with shops and stores selling everything from food, alcohol and clothes to furniture, electronics and jewelry. It was a cross between a flea market, a huge yard sale and a jumble of boardwalk shops. The smells of pizza, seafood, produce and steaks were mixed in with the oily smells of auto parts. The sounds of thousands of people moving about the plaza conversing with each other reverberated though the group's ears.

As the group exited the van Squall pulled Zell aside. "Zell we have a job to do and I need to know that you will remain focused and not socialize with the clients."

Zell stared at him for a moment then started to grin. "Why Squall, are you jealous that I was talking to Rinoa? You are aren't you?"

"That's ridiculous, I have no idea what you're talking about. We're on a mission here so get your act together."

As Squall turned to walk away from him Zell grabbed his shoulder and swung him around. "Look sarge, I know were on a mission here and I am totally focused. But you're only lying to yourself if you keep saying you don't have any feelings for that girl. I don't know how this will all play out but you'd be out of your mind not to at least get to know the girl. You don't have to worry about me trying to get with her but someone will if you miss your chance. Keep that in mind."

Squall watched Zell walk by him and make his way over towards the rest of the group. Squall knew from Zell's reputation at Garden that he was supposed to be a goof ball and a fool. And many times he was. However every now and then it seemed Zell could turn serious and speak his mind in a confident manner. Not that Squall was about to buy Zell's theory about him and Rinoa.

As Squall joined up with the others he got everyone's attention. "Ok this is how we are going to do this. Zell, I want you up front about ten feet ahead of the rest of the group. Rinoa, you, Zone and Watts stay back here with me. Nobody wanders off ok?"

Zone and Rinoa exchanged looks then chuckled slightly. Rinoa shook her head at Squall. "Squall, no one knows that you two are SeeD. The Galbadians may know that SeeD is in Wolfsburg but they don't know what the members of Forest Owls look like so just relax would ya? Besides, we're not gonna be here that long anyway."

Rinoa could see Squall start to fume again and rolled her eyes. "Ok, Ok, we'll do as you want. Now, we need to stop by several shops to get the food I want. Lately, we've been trying to eat better. Keep us healthier, ya know."

Squall shrugged. "Whatever, let's go."

Rinoa's first stop was one of the local produce and butcher shops. There she picked up several steaks and two bags worth of vegetables and fruits which she had Watts and Zone hold for her. Squall walked over to the entrance to the shop to observe anyone coming in. Rinoa took this opportunity to sneak over to Zell.

"So Zell, what's the deal with Squall?"

Zell started to grin. "What do you mean?"

"Like, why is he so anti-social? Why doesn't he laugh or smile? Is he single?"

Zell picked on how nonchalantly Rinoa had thrown in that last question. "Squall's not exactly an open person. He doesn't like to share his feelings or emotions with others. But he is a good person who you can count on when things go bad. I don't really know anything about his past. And yes, he is a single guy. Now why would you want to know that?"

Rinoa started to turn red slightly. "N-no reason at all. I don't go for his type. I just wanted to know if there was a woman in his life who could put up with him."

Zell laughed. "Right. I never said he was your type."

Rinoa saw Squall walking up to them and immediately signaled to Zell to drop the conversation. "Okay we're done."

"That's it!? We came all the way out here for this?"

Rinoa walked up to Squall with a sly look on her face. "No sergeant, we came out here for the food and to meet up with one our local Galbadian informants who will give us vital information for our first strike against the Badians with you guys."

Squall was shocked and severely pissed now. Not only was having to deal with these amateurs bad enough, but now they were keeping secrets about what they were really up to as if Squall and his team where the amateurs.

"You should have told me the real reason we were coming out here. I'm in charge of this team and I need to why we are going to the places we go to."

"Well, maybe I would have if you seemed a little more interested in what we are trying to do."

Before Squall could think of a response, Rinoa turned and marched off in the other direction, Watts and Zone right behind her. Zell looked at Squall, waiting for his go ahead to follow. Squall took a deep breath then signaled Zell to follow her.

Rinoa led the group towards the back of an auto parts shop in what was considered the back of Green Plaza. However, she stopped at a small toy store that was right next to the auto place. She walked up to a small coin operated charm and trinket dispenser. Rinoa reached into her pocket and grabbed a coin then dropped it into the machine and turned the small crank. The charm machine made a slight zipping noise then dropped a small silver charm into the dispenser tray. Rinoa picked it up and looked at it then laughed slightly. She walked over to Squall and handed it to him.

"I can't help myself; I've loved those little machines ever since I was a small girl. Here Squall, you take it for luck."

Squall took the charm off of her. "Luck is for people who have no skill."

"Then get rid of it, I don't really care." Rinoa scolded herself mentally for again trying to be nice to Squall. She knew he'd toss that thing the second no one was looking.

She turned and again headed off towards the auto parts shop with everyone following her. Squall let the group get ahead of him then flipped the charm over. It was a silver, rectangular shaped key chain with the impression of an angel engraved onto it. Squall was about to throw it onto the ground but it suddenly reminded him of Rinoa. The angel on it made him think of the angel wings tattoo on Rinoa's back. Making sure that no one was looking; Squall stuffed the key chain into his coat pocket then caught up with the others.

When they got there Rinoa turned to the others signaling them to wait there.

"From here on in I go alone. I know our contact because he's helped us before. He's easily spooked and won't show if we are all standing back there."

"No, you're not going alone." Squall walked up to Rinoa and turned back to Zell.

"Zell, take Watts and Zone and hang back here. I'll go with Rinoa."

Rinoa turned to protest but was met immediately by one of Squall's dead-serious stares. "I'm not asking ya Princess, I'm telling ya. I go with you. I don't care if you've used him as a source before; now that we're here someone goes with you. Its part of our contract and besides that, we should act as if the Badians know you have SeeDs with you."

After another moment of silence Rinoa slowly nodded. "Okay Squall." They made their way around back to an old picnic table. "Okay, this is it. We sit and wait here. Our contact should be showing up any minute now."

Squall nodded then took a seat on one side of the table thinking the Rinoa would sit on the opposite side. Instead she walked over and sat down next to him. This caused Squall to become a little uncomfortable. After a minute of the most awkward silence Rinoa had ever experienced, she decided to break it.

"So I'm assuming this is you're first mission."

"Is it that obvious?"

"Oh no, no, no. That's not how I meant it. I meant since I just saw you at the dance then this must be your first mission."

"Right, whatever."

Rinoa was a bit taken back by Squall's response. She honestly hadn't meant any disrespect and suspected that Squall knew this as well.

"Are you always like this? How do your friends put up with you if you're so anti-social and introverted? At the ball you were so-"

"You think you know me because we danced together? And I don't have any real friends because I don't need any. So I don't really have to worry about what they would think. Anymore questions?"

"Ya know what? Fuck it. Never mind. I don't even know why I bothered dancing with you."

"Like it matters, you were there looking for Seifer anyway, right? I was just the back up choice."

"That's none of your business. You don't know me either. And Seifer was the reason I got the meeting with Cid. He really helped us out because he cares. You don't know him or me at all."

Squall laughed and scoffed outloud at the same time. "I know Seifer plenty. I know him better then most. He's a fucking loser that got people killed during our SeeD exam because he wanted to show off his fighting skills. He's an arrogant lost cause and he's done at Garden. If he helped you out its because he thought he'd get something out of it."

Rinoa glared at him for a moment then got up and moved to the opposite corner on the other side of the picnic table. She couldn't believe this guy. First he comes off sweet and sincere at the ball and then turns into a complete jerk off the next time she sees him. And then he brings up Seifer as well. There was definitely bad blood between those two.

_ I would've thought he'd be excited to see me. To hell with him then._

Rinoa didn't know why she was so pissed over this. Normally she had no problem telling a guy off if he was a pain in the ass or was getting out of line. She also would never give any guy this much slack or let anyone talk to her like he did. Not unless she really felt something for the guy. Rinoa shook the thought off. She'd broken up with better guys then him and he was no different. It was just taking a little longer to get him out of her mind.

"Rinoa."

Both Rinoa and Squall turned and saw a skinny male walking towards the table. He had light brown hair that was cut short and was dressed in jeans and a red shirt. He had a black bookbag on his back. Rinoa smiled and got up.

"Hey Firo, how have you been?" She walked up to the man and hugged him.

"I'm good Rin, how have you been."

"I'm great," Rinoa said.

Firo nodded to Rinoa then turned his attention to Squall who was now standing behind her. Rinoa realized she hadn't introduced Squall yet, not that she thought he'd care anyway.

"Um, Firo this is Squall. He and his team are going to be helping the Forest Owls out. They're mercenaries. Squall, Firo is one of our local sources for intel. He's one of many Tims that work for the Galbadians here on their bases collecting intel for the resistnace groups."

Squall and Firo exchanged glances. Squall didn't trust moles and Firo didn't trust mercenaries.

Firo snorted. "Mercs huh? That means SeeD. Killers for hire."

Squall's eyes narrowed. "Not exactly."

Rinoa looked from one male to the other and back then cleared her throat. "Firo, you have something for me right?"

Firo broke eye contact with Squall then took off his bag and reached into the larger pocket and pulled out a large manilla envelope. "Here you go Rin. I just hope you know what you're doing. If you guys are planning on doing what I think you're gonna do then you better have a damn good plan. Your group has never tried anything on this scale before. I'm guessing that's what the mercs are for. You've brought in shooters that are pros."

Rinoa grinned slightly and shook her head as she took the envelope. "Now Firo, you know the rules. You know I can't tell you what the group is up to." She walked over to Firo and placed one of her hands on his shoulder. "Don't worry so much. We know what we're doing."

Firo nodded quietly then looked Rinoa in the eyes. "Just watch your ass ok. I gotta get out of here. Take care."

Firo gave Rinoa a hug then gave Squall one last look before turning and running off back into the crowd. Squall ignored his glare and turned to Rinoa.

"Mind telling me what's in that or what this first mission is?"

Rinoa turned to Squall and winked. "You'll see."

* * *

Back on the train, everyone gathered into the conference room to go over the first mission SeeD would be assisting with. Squall was particularly anxious to get moving with things. The sooner they helped the rebel group out enough to satisfy them, the sooner he could get back to Garden.

In the middle of the room was a large table with a model train set on top of it. It had three sets of tracks running through what looked like a wooded area. Squall guessed it had something to do with the first mission.

Dylan cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. "Everyone take a spot around the table. This will be our first full scale operation using all of our resources as well as the assistance of SeeD. Our resistance group, The Forest Owls, will forever be known in the pages of history regarding Timber's independence."

Zone, Rinoa and Watts all nodded gleefully at this declaration. The rest of the Owls standing in the room also nodded in prideful patriotism.

"Exciting huh?" Zone asked the SeeDs.

Zell and Selphie gave a slight nod while Squall crossed his arms and shot one eyebrow up at Zone. After another moment of awkward silence, Dylan spoke up again.

"It all started when we first heard rumors that Galbadia's president was making a stop in Wolfsburg to inspect the military base there."

"Vinzer Deling is coming here?" Squall asked.

"Yes he is," Dylan replied.

Watts shook his fist up and down in anger. "We hate Vinzer Deling. He's a murderer and a despot. He's a dictator, not a president. He isn't even popular in Galbadia."

Rinoa pulled out the manilla envelope and opened it up, taking out the papers and spreading them out onto the table. "Deling is traveling from the Galbadian capital to Wolfsburg. He wants to keep his arrival low key so he's taking a private train with a small detachment of troops on it. These papers note the route he'll be taking, the times and any track switches along the way. It also has specs about the train's layout, enemy numbers and security systems."

Dylan stepped forward. "This is what you went to the plaza to get. Our plan is to..."

"Blow it up with a rocket launcher and send the bastard straight to hell!" Selphie yelled.

The room went dead silent as everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to look at the petite, innocent looking girl in the yellow dress. Selphie had her arms up in anticipation for a moment then dropped them quickly when she realized no one else seemed to share interest in her idea. Zone and Watts looked frightened and took a few steps back from Selphie. Squall let out a long sigh and massaged his temples.

Dylan scratched his head then turned to Selphie. "Ahh…not quite. We need Deling alive."

Zell turned to Dylan. "So what exactly do you want us to do? Get to the point already!"

"He wants us to kidnap Deling off his own train."

Everyone turned to Squall who stood looking at the models on the table with his arms crossed. For the doubts he had in this group, even Squall had to admit, just to himself, that if the Owls could pull this off they'd be helping the entire planet. If they did manage to grab Deling Squall would immediately contact Garden to let Cid know about them having Deling. Cid would probably be able to convince Rinoa to hand him over to Garden for safe keeping.

_Man would I have to seriously eat my words about this group if we pull this off. I mean Timber independence would be a sure thing after that. But having a plan to grab Deling and actually doing it are two very different things._

Dylan nodded. "Exactly. I guess we shall begin. Go ahead Rinoa."

Rinoa leaned over and grabbed several trains out of a box then put them on the tracks in different places. "First, I'll go over the models. The yellow train on the top set of tracks is our train. The one in front of it will be the dummy car. We made it to look just like the president's private train car. The Galbadian train has the front locomotive pulling four train cars. Behind the locomotive is the front escort car. The red car behind it is the president's car. Deling should be inside of it. Next is the rear escort car. Lastly, behind that is the tech car. This train car houses the computers and terminals that control the security. Once we get on the tech car, we begin the operation. Our ultimate goal is to seize the president in his car using our train. That means we'll have to switch our dummy car with their president car. By computer, we can remotely use the two switch points on the tracks leading up to Timber to carry out this operation. Everyone understand so far?"

Rinoa waited for everyone to nod then went back to her explanation. "Okay, the actual attack will take several steps. First step; Squall, Selphie, Zell and myself will jump from the roof of our dummy car to the back tech car. This should be no problem for you SeeDs. Second, we shut down their security and sensor systems. Third, after securing the tech car, we move across the roof of the tech car, rear car and the president's car."

Zone pointed to Deling's train car. "Deling will actually be by himself in this car since we have confirmed intel that he always rides alone. He hates company, especially the company of his guards and enjoys his solitude. All the soldiers with him will stay on the escort cars and a few on the locomotive to protect it."

Rinoa nodded. "That's right. Next, we have to uncouple the first escort car. We'll have to complete the uncoupling before the first switch point. If we fail…"

"Boom, we're finished!" Selphie exclaimed.

Rinoa looked at Selphie for a second. "Uh…yea. So we'll have to move fast. I'll explain the uncoupling process later. After the uncoupling, we have our locomotive and our dummy car move in. At this point, our train and their train will be linked and moving together. After that we uncouple the second escort car. This is the last uncoupling. The process will be similar to the first one. Lastly, we escape with the president's car while we leave the dummy car in between the front and rear escort cars. After that, we rush in and secure Deling then get our asses back to the train yard. We'll have five minutes to complete the seven steps. If we mess up, our train will likely collide with theirs and we all die. So don't forget that."

Zell scratched his chin. "Do ya think five minutes will be enough?"

Zone nodded. "According to the simulation we ran, it should only take about three minutes to complete the operation. Piece of cake for SeeD Special Forces right?

Selphie jumped up and down. "Of course! Too easy!"

Squall wasn't too sure though.

Rinoa turned to Watts. "Ok, now let's talk the security and sensor systems. Go ahead Watts."

Watts cleared his throat. "The sensors detect changes in weight made by any object moving across the top of the train car. While its operating, no one can make it across the tops of the escort cars or Deling's car."

Zell crossed his arms. "So how exactly do we get past them?"

Watts picked up a touch screen PDA tablet and showed it to them "With this. Inside the tech car, there's a junction box that contains a terminal we can use to access the sensors and the security systems. Rinoa will take the tablet and connect it to the terminal via USB port. Then I will hack the system remotely from back here and shut the systems down. Best of all, we can setup a ghost signal that will make the soldiers think the sensors are still running. And I can remotely lock the doors to the tech car after you guys exit so the Badians can't get back in."

"You are certain you can hack their system?" Squall asked.

Watts nodded with confidence. "Absolutely, I'm using a metamorphic code virus to access the system and hijack it. And we have SEMP radios to communicate with each other back and forth.

"When it comes to computers and hacking, Watts knows exactly what he's doing," Dylan added.

Rinoa looked around and saw that everyone, even Squall, seemed satisfied with how they will disable the security. "That's about it for the sensors. Next, let's talk about how to uncouple the escort cars. We can't manually uncouple the cars while they are moving together on the tracks. Instead, we'll have to tamper with the control system that manages the coupling. It's located right by the coupling itself. If we temporarily disable the circuit for the connection, the car will uncouple automatically. To disable it, we'll have to enter several codes that we have been provided with ahead of time. The codes will be four digit numbers. That's about it for the uncoupling process, any questions?"

"Who's in charge of getting the tracks to switch?" Squall inquired.

Zone and Dylan raised their hands. "We'll be handling that on a separate computer from the one that Watts will be using." Dylan answered.

Selphie raised her hand and Rinoa pointed to her. "I got everything down basically but I was just wondering why the model of the president's car looks so shabby. I mean the rest of the model is excellent."

Watts looked up. "Rinoa made that one. We bought everything else at one of the shops in Green Plaza."

"Wow," Zell said. "I thought some kid made it. The paint job on it really sucks."

Rinoa slapped her forehead. "Ok everyone shut up about the model. I made it that way on purpose. It represents my hatred towards Deling."

Selphie walked over to Rinoa and put her hand on Rinoa's shoulder. "That's one of the ugliest things I've ever seen. You must really hate this guy."

"Ok, I get it! Enough about the model already."

"She's right," Squall said. "Let's go over some of the tactical stuff. We need to decide whose doing what during all of this. First lets recap. We jump to the back tech car, neutralize any hostiles and take control of it. Then Rinoa plugs the tablet into the terminal there. Then Watts hacks the terminal and shuts down the sensors on the roof of each train car so we can cross them to avoid combat with the troops inside the escort cars. Watts, can you lock the doors to the escort cars as well?"

Watts grinned. "Not a problem."

"Ok good. After crossing the tops of necessary train cars we will initiate a uncoupling procedure between the front escort car and the Deling's train car. Then the Owls locomotive will speed in between those two cars and hook the fake Deling car to the front escort car. After that we perform a second uncoupling on the rear escort car. At this point Dylan will initiate the second tack switch and we take off with Deling's car leaving the fake car back with the Badian train. Everyone got it?"

Everyone nodded.

Dylan stepped forward. "Myself and the rest of the Forest Owls will also arm ourselves as well. Once we have Deling's train car separated from the Galbadian train, I'll join up with you and the five of us will go in to confront Deling. We'll be leaving shortly since Deling's train will be coming soon."

Squall looked at the Owls and raised an eyebrow. "Do you have a contingency plan?"

Rinoa and Dylan exchanged looks of confusion. "What do you mean? I don't think we really need one?"

Squall's eyebrow shot up. "This plan sounds full proof on paper and with the models but things rarely turn out to be that simple. How do we know that the information you have is any good or that it wasn't passed to you on purpose as a trap? And let's say that the intel is good and we make it on board, if Deling is on that train then it's got to be guarded by Galbadia's elite troops, the Republican Dragoons. They are extremely well trained, equipped and armed. Its even rumored that they've figured out a process similar to our own junction process to create the MEIJI particle and have started field testing Dragoons with it. If thats true those troops may be on board with him and that means they could be as tough as us. And we'll be outnumbered for sure. Plus, if something goes wrong and there is a firefight, we don't know how you or your people will react. After all, you've never been in actual straight forward combat with Badian soldiers, only guerrilla attacks. And your first test might be against Dragoons instead of regulars. And none of you know how to use magic."

Dylan shook his head in frustration. "You're right; those are all possibilities. Including the extremely short window of time we have. But we can't pass up on an opportunity like this. We'll just have to chance that our intel is good and that Deling will be on the train. As for how our people will react under fire, I have faith in them. Every Forest Owl has fought in live combat and I trust they will do their jobs against even the Republican Dragoons. I'm asking you to have a little faith in our group and our cause. We are your clients and I'm telling you that this strike is going to happen and you are going to help us. That is an order."

The room became completely silent as Dylan and Squall eyed each other up. Squall really had a bad feeling about this but knew that Dylan was right. Even if it was a trap, Squall and his team were going to board that train. They had been hired to. They were getting paid to. It was as simple as that.

After another moment of silence, Squall broke eye contact. "Ok, then we're going in."

* * *

It was dusk by the time the Forest Owls train finally caught sight of the Galbadian train. Squall, Zell, Rinoa and Selphie stood in the entrance area of the train waiting for the conductor's signal to go up top. All three SeeDs had changed into black colored BDU outfits equipped with body armor and stood fully armed with their duty belts on. They also had baklava style masks, goggles for the wind, and light armored spec ops helmets that they hadn't put on yet. Squall looked over to see what Rinoa was armed with. She had a small pistol holstered on her right hip and an arrow quiver hooked onto her left side filled with red and blue colored crossbow bolts. Mounted on her left fore arm was a miniature crossbow that could fire a single dart at a time. Squall walked over to her and pointed to her pistol.

"What are you carrying?"

Rinoa pulled her side arm to show him. "It's a Balamb P226 in 9mm."

"What about the different colored crossbow bolts?"

"The blue ones are normal bolts. The red ones are explosive tipped."

Squall nodded slowly. Before he could say anything else, Dylan's voice came on over the loud speaker.

"Galbadian train spotted. We're closing in fast."

Squall signaled everyone to follow him and made his way over to a wall ladder. Rinoa put on her mask and goggles and the SeeDs did the same along with the helmets. They climbed the ladder and threw open the roof hatch then positioned themselves on top of the dummy train so that they could jump to the president's locomotive. The speed of the train caused loud winds that whipped against them. Crouched down, with the others crouched behind him, Squall looked over at the enemy train. Judging by the proximity the two locomotives, he knew that they were going to have to act fast. The two tracks only stayed this close for minutes and on top of that any guard that spotted them jumping over could alert all the others. This whole thing would have to be pulled off with surgical accuracy.

"Are you ready?"

Squall carefully turned to Rinoa to answer her. "We're all set."

"Ok then we've got five minutes as of right now to complete the steps."

Squall said nothing and turned back to face the train. A second later the two trains were moving parallel and Squall saw that it was safe enough to jump. He took one step back then launched himself off the dummy train using him GF enhanced strength. Squall flew across the open gap between the two locomotives and landed down on top the tech car. He turned back to the other and signaled Selphie to jump across. Using the same method as Squall, she took and step back and leaped over to the other train. As Zell prepared to jump across, Squall gave him the hold sign then signaled for him to throw Rinoa across. Rinoa turned to Zell with a confused look on her face.

"What does that mean?" she yelled.

Without saying a word, Zell turned to her and grinned then grabbed her suddenly and threw her toward the others using his enhanced strength. Rinoa screamed as she flew across and landed right in Squall's arms. Squall put her down gently then turned to Zell and waved him over. Zell took one step then leaped over to the second escort.

"What the hell was that!?"

Squall leaned over to her ear. "You wouldn't have made the jump."

"I could have used a little warning."

Squall shrugged the pointed to the back of the tech. Rinoa carefully moved as fast as she could to the ladder on the back of the train. Squall went down first followed by Zell and then Rinoa. Squall signaled for Selphie to stay on top. They all remain crouched down on the back landing of the tech car. Squall pulled his suppressed .22 caliber pistol and signaled to Zell to try the door. Zell tried the door handle then signaled back to Squall that it wouldn't budge.

"I'm gonna use magic to breach the doors. Zell, you'll clear the room silently."

Zell nodded that he understood then pulled his knife out. Squall focused and ignited a ball of fire into the palm of his hand. Rinoa moved around to the opposite side of Squall to stay clear of the blast. Squall pointed his hand at the door handle and fired the projectile. It launched from his hand and connected with the door handle, creating a small explosion while burning through the door and causing some of the surrounding door frame to snap and shatter.

Rinoa watched in astonishment as Zell hit the door with incredible speed and entered the tech car, Squall trailing behind him. Rinoa walked towards the door but stopped when she heard the sounds of struggle and fighting then several suppressed shots and then nothing. Suddenly the door swung open again causing Rinoa to jump suddenly. Squall appeared in the door way and signaled for her to follow him in. As she walked into the tech car, she observed the layout of the train car. Several large hard-drives lined the walls of the car accompanying two separate monitoring stations each with several large computer screens and keyboards. Then she saw the bodies of three dead Galbadian soldiers on the ground. She carefully walked around the bodies and sat down at one of the terminals. Rinoa took the back pack she had on containing the PDA tablet off her back and retrieved the PDA. Then she plugged the tablet into the USB port of the computer in front of her. That done she pulled the radio out of her bag and pressed down the transmit button.

"Watts, we're successfully in and have secured the tech car." She looked over her shoulder and saw Zell and Squall watching the door leading out to the other train cars. "The tablet is plugged into the computer over hear. Let me know what to do next."

Back on the Owl's train, Watts, Zone and Dylan sat in the conference room at the table monitoring the situation. When they heard Rinoa's voice come over the radio stating they had secured the tech car, they briefly celebrated and welcomed the confident feeling of being a step closer to victory. Watts began relaying commands to Rinoa,

"Ok Rinny, go to the drives window and open it up then double click on the external drive that has the USB hooked into it."

Rinoa followed the directions and made her way to the proper window then clicked on the USB port. It opened up a window show a single file on the USB drive labeled _Attack Virus._

"Rin, you should see a single file called Attack Virus. Click on it and I will be able to take it from there."

Rinoa followed the directions and double clicked on it. A moment later another window opened up and lots of green colored numbers and letters started filling up the screen.

"Great job Rin, I'm in. Now I just need to defeat their firewalls ands defenses."

Rinoa turned to Zell and Squall. "Ok, Watts is in and hacking his way through their security."

Squall acknowledged then continued to watch the door with Zell. He moved his head over just enough to peak through the small window on the back door and looked into the rear escort car. Inside that car he observed several Galbadian regulars and two Dragoons. None of the enemy soldier appeared to have heard anything, not that this surprised Squall. After all, they were on a fast moving train.

Meanwhile Watts continued to furiously insert lines of code into the Galbadian security system then came to an abrupt stop and threw his arms up into the air.

"Yes! We're in! I've got control of the system." He picked up the radio and transmitted over to Rinoa while Dylan and Zone congratulated their comrade. "Rin, I'm in! We did it! The system wasn't even that hard to break. Almost too easy."

Rinoa grinned an jumped with delight. "Thats great Watts! You did it! Deling is almost ours."

Zell and Squall heard the transmission and looked at each other. Squall looked slightly concerned. Zell shared the feeling.

"Keep your eyes peeled Zell. If Watts is saying that hacking the system on Deling's train was too easy, its probably because it was."

Zell silently gave a quick nod.

Squall turned his attention to Rinoa. "Rinoa, have Watts lock the front and rear entrances to both escort cars. After that lets get back up top and make our way over to start the uncoupling process."

Rinoa got back on the radio to Watts. "Watts, lock up the doors to both escort cars. We are heading up top to make our way across to Deling's car."

"Copy," Watts replied.

Now on top the group quickly made their way across the tech car and rear escort car before finally crossing president's private car to the first escort car. Squall gently lowered Rinoa down to the coupling then jumped down and covered the entrance to the president's car. The door to the president's car had no window so Squall drew his pistol. Zell also jumped down to cover the entrance to the first escort car while Selphie stayed up top on the Deling's train car. Not wasting any time, Rinoa went straight to work with the coupling. She plugged her PDA into the terminal and typed in a few codes then waited. A few seconds later a green light flashed across the small screen of her PDA. She disconnected it then shoved it into her pocket.

"Ten seconds till it unhooks!" she yelled.

Squall nodded then turned to Zell and pointed up. Zell took a step back then jumped straight up, flipped once and landed right next to Selphie. Squall turned to Rinoa and lifted her up to Selphie who used her enhanced strength to easily pull her up. Then Squall jumped up, grabbed the top of the car and threw himself up with one arm.

The coupling unlatched and the train split apart just as it came up to the first connecting rail. As the space between the two halves increased, the Forest Owl train sped up and moved across the connecting rail, sliding right between the two halves. It slowed slightly to allow the second half of the Galbadian train to connect with it.

The group jumped from the presidential train car over to their train. About ten seconds later the train came to the second connecting rail and switched tracks, taking the presidential car with them and leaving the dummy president car with the Galbadian train. The Forest Owl train slowed allowing the group to safely open the roof hatch and climb down. Watts, Dylan and Zone all ran out of the conference room and met them in the hall.

"We did it! We did it!" Watts shouted.

"We got that son of a bitch!" Zone said.

Dylan walked over to Rinoa and put his hand on her shoulder. "We did it kiddo. After three years of hard work we finally got a break. With Deling as our prisoner we can finally make some real change in this country."

Dylan turned to Squall. "I want all three of you to go in there with Rinoa like we dicussed. We'll keep the masks on for now so he doesn't see our faces. Zone and Watts, do you guys want to go in as well? Yu've eaned the right to go in there."

Watts and Zone each took a step back. Zone looked at Watts then turned to the others then grabbed his stomach and doubled over. "Watts is too young and my stomach hurts. I don't think I should go."

Dylan laughed. "Ok fine. Squall, you take Rinoa, Selphie and Zell and go in. We should let Deling know he's gonna be late for his inspection."

Rinoa slammed one fist into her other hand. "It's time to start seriously aggressive negotiations with Deling."

Selphie jumped up then pumped her fist up and down. "Hell yes!"

"Hold on a second." Everyone stopped psyching themselves up and turned to Squall. "Does no one else think this was a little too easy? Something is going on here."

Rinoa walked over to Squall and dropped her hands to her hips. "Look Squall, we executed a good plan and caught the Galbadians with their pants down. We've got the Galbadian president in the next car. Perhaps someone is just slightly frustrated that a bunch of half ass rebels managed to get Deling. I'm going in there and you guys are coming with me. That is an order."

Squall let out a frustrated breath. "Fine, lead the way."

Rinoa turned from Squall to the door and took a deep breath then opened it. Deling's private car was lavishly decorated. It had a single booth off to the right that was made from wood and leather that Deling was seated in. The rest of the interior was lined in polished oak and mahogany. Red carpet lined the floors while gold trimming lined the walls. Deling sat calmly at the booth flipping through the pages of a newspaper. As the group walked up to him, he never so much as flinched or even looked up to acknowledge their existence.

Rinoa found her self hesitating and a bit intimidated by Deling's actions. How could he be so calm during all of this? Suddenly she realized she'd just lost the fire she had in the other room. Not wanting to show weakness in front of either Deling or Squall, she made herself walk right up to his table.

"President Deling, as long as you…don't resist, you won't get hurt. But…you're our prisoner now."

The room went silent while everyone waited for Deling's response. Then suddenly a small chuckle began to emulate from Deling. It grew into an explosive laughter that echoed throughout the room. Deling snapped his head in Rinoa's direction and gave her a glair that sent chills down her spine.

"And if I do resist…What would you do? What would a little girl like you do?"

Deling slowly turned to Rinoa. Rinoa took two steps back and gasped.

Squall started to reach for his pistol. "What's wrong?"

Deling laughed again. "Boo fucking hoo, too bad." He took another step towards the group. "I'm not the President. I'm a body-double, a new specialty the Galbadian military cooked up. And you have just walked into an ambush. We heard rumors that one of the rebel groups hired SeeD. We let that piece of shit Firo think we weren't onto him and let this bogus information fall into your hands. He cried like quite a little bitch and pissed his pants before we put a bullet through his fucking skull!" The body double roared with laughter.

"Oh Hyne…" Rinoa trailed off as she brought her hand up to her mouth.

"I knew it! I knew this was too easy!" Squall said.

Zell looked at the others then back at the laughing body double. "Ah, the hell with this!" He charged forward and spun his body then using his GF enhancements threw a side thrust kick that connected center mass on the false Deling. The kick silenced the fake Deling and sent him flying back across the room, smashing into the back wall. He hit with a loud hollow thud then dropped to the ground. Everyone started to move toward him but stopped suddenly when the false president flew back up to his feet in an inhuman fashion.

"Big mistake. Now I'm gonna have to resist. So show me what you had in store for me if I resisted little girl." The false president's body started to shake and contort.

"What the…" Squall said.

The body of the false president started to expand and bloat. Masses of flesh grew, one on top of the other. The stomach split open revealing mutated internal organs. The face melted away into a skull-like face that was smeared with dripping flesh. The monster took one step forward and roared.

"Bio-weapon!" Selphie yelled.

Squall turned to Rinoa for orders but found her frozen in fear. He immediately turned to the others. "Pistols! Draw!"

All three SeeDs drew their pistols and opened fire on the monster, spraying it with gunfire. The bullets from all three handguns slammed into the monster pushing it back slightly. Selphie ran dry first; Zell and Squall went dry a second later. To their horror the monster shook off the attack and started a slow trot towards them.

"Melee weapons!" Squall ordered. All three SeeDs holstered their handguns. Squall drew Revolver from its sheath while Selphie pulled out her nunchuck from its pouch on her belt. Zell dropped down into a ready stance.

"Charge!"

All three SeeD's screamed as they ran toward the monster. Zell got there first and slugged the thing with a right cross and then a left hook followed by jump kick that caught the thing under the chin. The monster absorbed the attacks with out flinching. As Zell raised his hand to throw another punch, the monster reached out with lightning speed and snatched his hand then threw Zell back behind him. Zell hit the wall with the same thud the monster had before it changed.

Squall and Selphie reached the monster at the same time. Squall stayed low while Selphie went high. Selphie's nunchuck caught the monster in the face while Squall's gunblade sliced away a chunk of flesh from the monster's leg. The monster yelped in pain then took a step back. Squall spun around and watched the cut on the monster seal up almost immediately. He raised his sword for another attack but was hit in the gut by the monster, sending him crashing into the booth. The monster turned to Selphie and raised its open palm to her. A black oily orb formed in the center and grew to the size of a melon. The monster raised its arm and hurled the putrid mass towards Selphie. Using her GF junctions, Selphie was quick enough to roll out of the way. The monster started to lunge for her but heard another war cry and turned to See Zell hurling himself through the air with his right leg pointed out like a lance. His jump kick land another center mass hit and flung the monster towards the other side of the room. It was immediately up and saw Squall trying to get to his feet and screamed in rage then charged towards him.

The scream snapped Rinoa out of her shock and she reached for her sidearm. She fumbled with it slightly as her hands were still shaking but managed to open fire on the thing. The bullets pelted what appeared to be the back of its mutated shoulder causing it to stop dead in its tracks. Rinoa kept firing as the thing turned to her and started to march over to her. Her gun ran dry but she was too scared to realize it and just kept on pulling the trigger on the empty gun.

Squall turned to Zell and Selphie. "Magic attacks!"

Zell held out his hand and formed a fire ball ten inches across while Selphie brought both hands together to charge a lightning strike. The fireball sailed across the room and slammed into the back of the monster. The thing scream in agony as the fire incinerated enough flesh to dig a small crater into the monster. It turned to Rinoa to try to strike her but was stuck by a bolt of lightning from Selphie's hands. The electricity glowed white hot as it encircled the monster's body, causing it to fall over.

Squall turned to Rinoa. "Rinoa! Get over here now!" Squall's thunderous command caused her to jump and run over to the others without any thought taking place.

"Load your crossbow with one of those explosive bolts. When I say, shoot that thing square in the chest."

Rinoa nodded then pulled one of her red bolts and loaded it in. Squall turned to Zell and Selphie. "Everyone hits him with fire on my command."

All three Seed's charged fireballs in their hands, waiting for the creature to get back up. On the other side of the train car the monster slowly stood itself back up then charged full speed at the group.

"Now!"

Squall, Selphie and Zell launched their magic attacks simultaneously flinging three flaming balls of pure energy at the monster. Two hit the creature in the upper chest while the third struck the monster in the lower abdomen. The flames ate through the monsters flesh exposing its rib cage and mass of internal organs Squall guessed was the heart. He pointed to Rinoa and nodded. She immediately lined her target up and released the projectile. It sailed through the air and hit the monster in the heart dead on. A massive sound wave reverberated through the train car as the arrow's explosive tip ignited, blowing the monster to pieces. Flesh and black goo splattered all over the back of the train car.

Squall wasted no time taking charge. He ordered everyone out of the president's private car and back into the base train. Once everyone was inside he turned to Dylan, who was waiting right on the other side of the door.

"What the hell was that thing?"

"Never mind that. I need this train to let the other car go. We've been setup and we won't have much time until…" Squall trailed off as he heard the sounds of choppers close by. Everyone stopped what they were doing and listened.

"Oh shit." Squall ran over to one of the side doors and looked out. When he didn't immediately see anything he adjusted view and looked up farther. A Galbadian attack chopper came into view, hovering just above the tree line as it moved through the air, easily keeping up with the train. Then Squall spotted the gun turret underneath the chopper turn towards the train. "Down!"

Everyone hit the deck just as the large caliber machine gun opened fire. Rounds of large caliber armor piercing ammunition slammed into the train causing an ungodly roar throughout the locomotive. The rounds were cutting right through the train's outer hull but were being stopped in spots were extra thick armor plating lined the inside walls. However, the armor wasn't placed everywhere and dozens of rounds made it through the walls, cutting the train up and sending shrapnel in all directions. The side door took a burst and almost exploded; send over a quarter of it flying off. The helicopter ceased fire and flew over to the other side of the train and opened fire again. Bullet's whizzed through the walls in certain places. In other parts of the train, yelling and screaming could be heard. Squall stayed on his stomach and crawled over to Dylan.

"I need you to get to the control room and tell them to uncouple the train from the other car. Then use the PA system to tell the guy upfront to give this thing as much speed as he can."

Dylan nodded and started to crawl up the step and through the door. When he disappeared out of sight, Squall turned to Rinoa. "What kind of heavy weapons do you have on this thing?"

"We have one RPG launcher. Then there's the G36's you guys grabbed and a few other rifles. They're all in the conference room on the far side in a large trunk."

"Ok, where's the safest place on this train? What's completely armored?"

Rinoa thought for a second. "The hallway up there is armored completely." She yelled in between blasts of gunfire.

"Ok then. Everyone listen up. Next time he stops firing to change sides again, you two are coming with me to the conference room. Rinoa, you get your ass into that hallway and stay down."

Everyone nodded and waited for the firing to stop. Another second later the cannon ceased as the chopper once again moved. Everyone got to their feet and ran. Rinoa flew up the steps then hit the floor again while the Seeds ran into the conference room, which had taken a serious beating. Pieces of wood, paper and plastic from the table, book shelves and the model were everywhere. In one of the corners was the body of a Forest Owl. Selphie turned him over and saw that he'd be shot straight through the heart and abdomen by the helicopter. Selphie ran over and checked him for a pulse then shook her head to the others. Squall and Zell nodded that they understood then ran through the rest of the mess to the trunk. Squall opened up to find three G36s, three M4 rifles, several hunting rifles with scopes on them and one RPG launcher with only one round. Selphie's 249 SAW was also in the room.

"Holy shit that's all they got!" Zell exclaimed.

"What is it out there?" Selphie asked.

"Galbadian attack chopper, an OC95 Stalker. There's only one rocket so we got to make it count. Zell, you take a G36 and set up in the hall. Selphie, take your SAW. I'm gonna crawl up to the bunk room and take him out once you get his attention."

Zell and Selphie grabbed the weapons and ran out to the hall. Squall took the launcher and the rocket and ran up to the stairs to the main hall. He found Rinoa still lying on her stomach with her head down with two others lying behind her. When she heard Squall's footsteps, she looked up at him.

"Well I could say I told you so," Squall yelled as he ran by.

Rinoa grumbled something under her breath and lowered her head to the floor again. Suddenly an explosion shook the train. Zell crawled to the door and yelled up to Squall. "They blew up the president's car. We separated from it though so we should speed up."

Squall crawled into the bunk room and found it pretty torn up. Watt's and Zone were lying behind the beds.

"Stay down," Squall ordered.

Squall continued to crawl over to the window which had been blown out. He lined himself up to the right of the window and loaded the rocket then waited for Zell and Selphie to get the pilot's attention.

Zell and Selphie loaded and charged their weapons then nodded to each other. Zell hit the switch and the door slid open. They both turned at the same time and opened fire on the chopper. Rounds flew through the air and bounced off the front and side of the chopper. Zell's rifle ran dry first but Selphie kept firing bursts at the attack chopper. Outside, the chopper turned their way and opened fire on the door. Zell yanked Selphie back into cover and Squall made his move. Out of the corner of his eye, the pilot spotted Squall swing around from the top window. Before he could pull the chopper back up Squall squeezed the trigger and fired the rocket. It punched right through the cockpit glass and exploded. The chopper burst into flames then dropped to the ground tumbling over and over until it smashed into a tree, leaving flaming wreckage behind as the train moved on.

Squall turned to Watts. "Tell them to get us back to the city fast. We need to hide what's left of this train."

Watts got up and ran out of the room. Zone got up and followed him out. They had to check the train to see if there were any more injured or casualties. Squall put the rocket launcher on the floor and sat down on one of the bunks.

"It's been one hell of a first day."

**NOTES**

I changed how the whole train mission went down and gave it a different ending. Don't worry, it doesn't change anything significant but it will help me connect this chapter to the way I'm going to write the next chapter. I also threw in some more Rinoa/Squall drama to keep their development up. I don't want to give out any spoilers but I am going to say that their relationship will be pretty rocky up until a certain event and then start to slowly improve over the rest of the game.


	14. Plan B

**Chapter 14**

**Plan B**

Monday, May 9th 2217NE

8:10pm

Squall helped carry the last of the documents over to the makeshift bonfire to be burned. Two miles out from the city, the engines had died from damage taken during the chopper attack causing the locomotive to come to a sluggish halt. The Galbadian chopper had caused more damage than they had all thought.

Squall crumpled up one more sheet of paper and tossed it into the fire as Dylan came up behind him.

"That's the last of the crucial documents on the train. Anything else, including our contract with SeeD, is at the train house."

Squall raised an eyebrow. "Train house?"

Rinoa walked up to him and crossed her arms. "It's our real base. The train was like our mobile command center. Thank God I left Angelo there."

"Where's it at?"

"It's in the next train yard over from were we kept our train."

"Then that is our next move." Squall kept eye contact with Rinoa for another moment, looking into her eyes. He saw the guilt and shame from having been wrong about this whole operation. When she saw that he had noticed, she quickly turned away from him. Squall didn't know why but he felt bad for her. Normally he might have chewed someone out for walking into such a trap but he felt no thrill or pride from having been right about Deling's train.

He switched his focus back to Dylan. "Damage and casualties?"

Dylan rubbed his temples and sighed. "The train itself is totaled. There's no way we could get it back up and running without some serious work. So it looks like were walking back into the city. As for casualties…"

Dylan trailed off as another lump formed in his throat. Rinoa's eyes were red and puffy as she walked over to him and gently rubbed his shoulder, trying to reassure him. When she saw that he couldn't say it, she turned to Squall.

"Watts and Zone are ok. Takada, Walters and Higgins also made it. Everyone else is dead. Bron, Zane, Russel, Silva, Boothe, Zahn and Rook...all dead. They got us good." As she said it, a single tear slowly fell from Rinoa's eye and rolled down her cheek.

Again a strange sting hit Squall over seeing Rinoa upset. He shook it off the best he could. "I see."

Selphie and Zell exited the train with the remainder of their gear and weapons and put them on the ground next to the equipment the Owls had managed to salvage. Takada, Walters and Higgins came out after them and picked up their gear then stood waiting for orders

"Ah Squall, that's it man. Me and Selphie are ready to go. And Selphie finished rigging the train."

Zone's eye's widened. "Rigging the train?"

All the remaining Owls turned to Squall with confused looks.

Squall looked them in the eyes. "We have to destroy the train. I had Selphie rig it with C4. It will cover up any evidence of SeeD or Forest Owl presence."

Dylan walked up to Squall. "What about the bodies of our comrades?"

Squall answered without missing a beat. "We leave them in there."

Rinoa threw her hands up in the air. "What!? You can't be serious?"

"I'm dead serious. We have a two mile hike back into the city and carrying the bodies will slow us down too much. And you may not have realized this but the Galbadians will be back up here in no time to look for us. Not to mention the fact that the city is gonna be crawling with more soldiers now that we tried to take Deling and shot down a Badian chopper. So time is critical here."

Zone stomped his foot on the ground. "This is bullshit! If it were one of you Hyne damned mercs you'd want to take the body back!"

Selphie walked up to Zone and Rinoa. "I know this is hard but leaving them behind will allow us to move faster. Plus is may trick the Galbadian forces on their way here that no one survived the train's explosion."

Zone was about to scream some more obscenities but stopped when he saw Rinoa drop to her knees. "Their right guys, we have to leave them behind…it's my fault. It's my fault their dead. I planned this out. I was so sure of myself. I, I…"

She tried to hold back the tears but they pushed back too hard. Selphie and Zell turned to Squall with looks of concern and heart break on there faces. Squall looked at the Owls and saw that they were all on the verge of breaking down.

_We are not falling apart right now._

Squall marched over to Rinoa and grabbed her with both hands, yanking her to her feet. Then he moved his eyes to within inches of hers. "You listen to me and you listen well. This is war. This is what war is. You planned a strike with out proper planning and intel and walked into a trap. We can't change that now. But every military force on the planet makes bad calls so stop beating your self up. Operations don't always go the way they should and people die because of it. It's no one's fault."

Squall looked up from her to address the other Forest Owls. "You all said that you weren't amateurs and now is your chance to prove it. Professionals wouldn't let their comrade's deaths be for nothing. Amateurs would break down and quit. Now, are you amateurs or are you going to cowboy the fuck up and be professionals?"

Rinoa sniffed a few times then wiped the tears off her cheeks. "Ok."

Squall saw the other Owls do the same. He walked over to his gear and picked up his bag then slung it over his shoulders. "Ok then. Everyone get you weapons and gear up. I want everyone ready to go in five minutes. We have the cover of darkness so it shouldn't be that difficult to get back into the city. But we still have to travel quickly. Now move out."

Everyone jumped to and started getting their gear and weapons. Squall turned to Selphie. "Set the timer for twenty minutes. That should give us enough time to disappear into the forest before this thing blows up."

"Yes sir." Selphie ran back into the train to get the times on the C4 ready.

"Sargeant."

"What is it Zell?"

"Good job dude."

Squall looked at Zell for a second then nodded before walking over to the tree line to get a feel for the woods. Hopefully they wouldn't run into any Galbadians or monsters. They needed to get back to the city fast.

* * *

"Seifer, what are you up to? Why are we in Timber?"

"Well my dear instru… well, ex-instructor, you are here because you decided it was a great idea to follow me into the parking garage. And I am here to get the glory that is rightfully mine."

Seifer looked around the small dock where he'd left the boat, looking for Galbadian patrols. He checked the magazine for Hyperion then slapped it back into the gunblade. He returned it to its holster then turned back towards Quistis. "We both know that Garden has green lit Deling for elimination. So I'm gonna take him out myself and prove to everyone that I am the best warrior in Garden.

Quistis' jaw dropped. "Are you out of your mind? He's protected by dozens of Republican Dragoons. You'd be dead before you got anywhere near him. And how do you know he's even here?"

"Because that girl Rinoa, the one that hired Squall's team, told me that they had gotten confirmation that Deling would be coming to Wolfsburg. I told her not to mention that to Garden."

"Why not!? They would have sent veterans in to get him instead of Squall's team. We might have even been able to capture him."

"I told you, he's my kill. I don't need some expert team of assholes stealing my thunder. I knew Cid would send a team of rookies to help a client that didn't have much money to offer."

"Seifer, you arrogant, selfish prick! You're gonna get yourself killed or worse, captured. Then they're going to make you talk. You are putting Garden and Balamb at risk."

Seifer swung around and grabbed Quistis by the shoulders. "So what Trepe! No one at Garden gives a shit about me so why shouldn't I do the same? And you've got some fucking nerve too. Always so concerned with Squall and his problems. I was your student too. I wanted you to…" Seifer took a deep breath and stepped back from Quistis. "You know you aren't strong enough to stop me even with the junctioning and you sure as hell can't go to the authorities here."

Seifer slung his holster over his back then put his coat on. "No one is going to deny me my destiny." Seifer turned away from Quistis and started walking towards the inner city. His first task was to get a vehicle since he needed to get deep into the city fast.

"I'm coming with you." Quistis caught up with Seifer and kept pace with him. She couldn't believe that Seifer could be this selfish or out of his mind. But she felt somewhat sorry for him at the same time. Seifer had never really had anyone to look out for him and that must have driven him to the way he was now. She had always put so much time into getting through to Squall that she never took the time to get to know Seifer or try to help him. Shaking off her thoughts she concentrated on the present. She had to make sure he didn't get them either killed or captured.

* * *

The run into the city had been a slow and quiet one and the darkness of night gave them great cover. The only sound that broke the silence had been the hollow boom of the train exploding back in the distance. Dylan and Squall had stayed up front while the others had stayed back approximately twenty yards. Several times the group had to stop and duck into bushes as Galbadian helicopters would fly over head on their way back to tracks. When they had finally gotten to the city, Watts and Zone had taken a cab back to the train yard to get the van. Now that the city was on full alert from the attack on the train, they all knew it was too dangerous for both the SeeDs and the Owls to be walking around, especially with their weapons and equipment.

The group stood in an alley way between two buildings waiting for the van to show. No one said anything. The SeeD's hadn't been hired to make conversation and the Owls where still in shock from having lost their friends and what had been their home for periods of time. Another thirty minutes went by before they saw the lights of the van appear farther down the alley. As they all climbed in, Zone switched places with Dylan, giving him the driver's seat while Zone seated himself next to Rinoa. He put his arm around her and gave it a squeeze.

"How you holding up Rin?"

"I can't believe we walked right into their trap. We lost our friends back there."

"I know Rin, I know. I can't believe they sent us a fake president."

Rinoa didn't respond, she only shook her head in defeat. She still felt guilty and ashamed from having set this whole thing up but she swore to herself that their friend's deaths would not be in vain. Squall might be one pretty big asshole, but Rinoa agreed with him that they couldn't fall apart over this.

Dylan put the van into drive and hit the gas. The van sped off down the alley and back out onto the roads heading east towards the highway. It took about forty minutes to get to the train house, which was located a few miles away from where they had kept the train. As the van pulled into the lot that the house stood on, Dylan shut the lights off. The train house was really nothing more than an abandoned train garage that had been boarded up and neglected. The large swinging doors that had allowed access to locomotive had been nailed shut. Only a single car sized garage entrance on the opposite side of the building seemed to still work. Dylan pulled the van up to it and Watts jumped out, running over to the pad lock on the right side of the door. He pulled a key out of his pocket then removed the lock before leaning over and pulling on the door. It rolled on its track and lifted right up. Watts waved the van through then walked in him self, lowering the door back down as he did so.

The inside didn't look much better than the outside. The first floor was basically used as a mechanical repair shop for the van and the train. The second floor was offices that they had turned into living quarters including bedrooms, bathrooms, a kitchen, a break room and a strategy room.

The group left most their things in the van then shuffled upstairs into the strategy room. Inside was a large rectangular table with enough chairs to seat everyone. There where several chalk boards and large desk with a computer on it. Along one of the walls was a large map of Wolfsburg and on the wall next to it was another larger map of Timber. Leaflets denouncing Galbadia's occupation of Timber where tacked and glued along the walls next to schedules and estimated Galbadian patrol routes. Watts was busy talking to someone on a land line phone in the corner.

_So they do have some planning at least._

The Forest owls took their seats on one side of the table with Dylan sitting at the head of the table on one side. Squall, Zell and Selphie sat on the other side.

"Where do we go from here?" Higgins asked.

Zone raised his hand to get their attention. "We could try contacting the other groups. The Sons of Timber and the Blue Falcons both owe us favors. They could help us to get another train."

Watts walked over to the table. "New info sir."

Dylan looked up. "Go ahead."

"I found out that Deling really did come to Wolfsburg. He was flown in yesterday. He's going to the old TV station. Security there is super tight now."

Rinoa looked puzzled. "The TV station? Why in Wolfsburg, or Timber for that matter. They can broadcast just as easily from Galbadia."

Dylan turned to the SeeDs. "We've noticed over the past few weeks that Badian presence at the TV station had tripled with lots of soldiers and technicians going in and out."

Selphie's eyes lit up. "Squall, do you think the Dollet communication tower has anything to do with this?"

No answer came from Squall. Zell and Selphie could already see he was deep in thought.

"What was that about a tower?" Zone asked.

"Dollet has a communication tower that can transmit and receive radio waves. It had been abandoned for years but the Badians got it up and running."

"We were at the battle of Chartersville. Galbadia captured a radio tower there and only withdrew their forces after Dollet agreed they could keep a small presence at the tower." Zell added.

"I get it. The biggest TV station in Timber is the one here in the capital. It's also one of the only ones still standing in Timber. Because of the GRIPH, everyone uses HD cable and other land lines for broadcasting and Internet use."

Zell threw his hands up. "Ok, so then even if they get all the towers up and running, won't the GRIPH keep the signals all screwy anyway? Radio hasn't worked for seventeen or eighteen years now."

Takada turned to Zell. "Well they have figured out how to broadcast with low orbit satellites using powerful magically enhanced signals. But even then, their range is pretty limited and is used mostly for cell phones."

"They must have figured out how to get around the interference using normal radio waves." Zone concluded.

Rinoa looked across the table to Zone. "Ok, so what does all that mean?"

"They are going to use the towers to transmit images and TV signals with out using cable."

"I know that. What I want to know is what is Deling going to broadcast? I mean why go to all this trouble to use radio waves?"

"The towers could serve several functions."

Everyone stopped and turned to Squall. "They could use the towers to spread propaganda all over the planet. They'd also have a distinct military advantage. They could encrypt the signals and use them to communicate between regions."

"Maybe they want to spread a message of love and peace!"

The whole room went dead silent as everyone turned to Selphie with perplexed looks on their faces.

Selphie's shoulders slumped. "Or not."

Rinoa shook it her head. "Anyway wouldn't it be great if the first real broadcast where to be a declaration of Timber's independence."

Dylan chuckled. "Or better yet, what if some group declared Timber's independence then captured Deling on live TV. That would set the Badians back for some time."

The Owls all laughed for a moment than suddenly became silent as the idea popped into all their heads at the same.

Squall sighed and dropped his head into his hand. "Ah man, he we go."

Zone stood up excited. "Ya know, that might be possible."

Rinoa joined him in standing. "Well, let's plan it out then. They'd never see it coming."

"If we're gonna do it then it has to happen tonight. A spy working for the Sons of Timber told them that Deling is leaving for Galbadia tomorrow morning." Watts said.

All five remaining Owls stood and walked over to one of the chalk boards before huddling around it, quietly discussing amongst themselves. All three SeeDs stood there with their jaws gaping wide. They couldn't believe what they where seeing.

Zell slumped down into his chair. "They got to be joking dude."

"I don't believe what I'm seeing." Squall added.

Selphie leaned over to Zell and Squall. "An operation like this would take at least a month to plan. Their just…writing a few things down on a chalk board."

Suddenly, Rinoa looked up to address the SeeD team. "Can you guys give us a few minutes? It's pretty simple so we'll have something ready to go soon."

Zell looked horrified. "Holy shit Squall, that's their strategy meeting. We're gonna die."

Selphie jumped into the conversation. "Can't we go home now!? I mean what were the details of the contract. Maybe we already fulfilled it?"

"Ok, I've had just about enough of this." Squall stood up and walked over towards the group.

Rinoa saw him walking over out of the corner of her eye and stopped talking to the others. The rest of them stopped and also turned to Squall. "Give us another five minutes would ya Squall?"

Squall closed his eyes and rubbed his temples.

_Hyne, give me lots of strength._

He let go of his head and turned back to Rinoa. "Um, before we get into another one of your great plans, can I see your contract with Garden?"

Rinoa eyed him up venomously for a moment then walked over to the desk with the computer on it. She knew what they were thinking and she couldn't believe it. _They want to leave. I cannot believe Squall. I was so wrong about him. God, he is such an egotistical asshole. _She pulled out what looked like a blank CD and handed it over to Squall. "There ya go captain."

"It's Seargent." Squall snapped as he yanked the disk out of her hand.

Rinoa whipped her head around and marched back to the group while Squall, Zell and Selphie positioned themselves around the laptop they'd been issued by Garden. Squall popped the CD in and waited for the document to come up.

Selphie leaned in. "What will be on the disk?

"Not much. It will have a confirmation code and a small detailed description of our task. Only a SeeD computer can read the encrypted files. It never mentions the term Garden or uses our names. This way, if it were ever to be captured it doesn't incriminate Garden."

The file loaded and Squall clicked on it to open. He checked out the confirmation code then moved on to the paragraph detailing their task. After taking a minute to read it he closed the window and pushed his chair back in frustration as he stood.

Selphie looked at Squall quizzically. "What does it say?"

"It basically says that we are to stay with the Forest Owls until Timber reaches a strong enough state so that they can at least go to the GCN for aid or until the Owls are satisfied enough with the state of the country to let us go. But we'd have to get that in writing from them. It also says that we are to protect Rinoa and Dylan directly and follow their orders."

Zell looked stunned. "What!? It could take years for them to reach independence. There must be some exception to the rule in Garden codes and laws?"

"Not unless the group asks us to commit what is recognized by the GCN as a crime against humanity or to take action against Garden. If we leave now we could be expelled or jailed by Garden."

"The contract is so vague!" Selphie exclaimed.

"You're professionals so start acting like it. I don't care what you think about our cause, we paid for your services so cut the shit."

They turned to see Dylan standing there with his arms crossed and a pissed off look on his face.

Rinoa walked up besides him. She was really pissed and disappointed with the SeeDs so far. Yes, they had saved their lives twice already but they had also complained about their cause and insulted the group's competence. Rinoa had given Balamb Garden good money for their help. It wasn't a lot of money but it was good money none the less. "I don't want to hear anymore bitching or moaning from any of you. We are doing our best and we just lost some of our best friends. I know you've saved our lives already but that doesn't mean you can blow us off. From now on you will do as ordered with out question."

Squall was seething with anger. Not only because was he being talked down to by some half ass group but because he knew that they were right. Even if they had no idea what they were doing, he still had to follow orders.

"Then what are your orders Rinoa?"

"We've come up with an idea on how to get into the tower. But first we need to get into town so get back into the van, we are leaving now."

* * *

The TV tower was located across town behind the Timber Maniacs building. The van pulled into the parking lot of the building. Watts, Zone, Walters, Higgins and Takada stayed in the van while the rest of them marched into the Maniacs building. Rinoa waved hello to the receptionist who nodded back to her the group walked by. "She's a resistance member too," she had whispered to Squall. When they got to the top floor and looked out the window over toward the tower they couldn't believe what they saw.

"I count at least fifty Galbadian regulars outside and one MA-41 main battle tank. There is no way we are getting in through the front. I also see two Dragoons walking on one of the balconies five stories up."

The Republican Dragoons had different uniforms then regular Galbadian military personnel. It consisted of black BDU's with red and silver armor and helmets that covered their entire face and heads.

"Zell's right. I also spot two MeW-5 Hunters off to the right side." Selphie added.

Squall turned to Rinoa. "The Hunters are medium sized mechanized walking tanks. They stand about forty feet tall and have jump jets too. With that kind of security Deling is sure to be in there. I'm assuming you know another way to get in."

Rinoa grinned. "I do. The Timber TV Station is actually several large buildings clustered together. Watts talked to the other groups and found out that there is an entrance to an old service tunnel behind the Aphora Pub next door that leads right up to the back of one of the TV buildings. There's a set of stairs that lead all the way to the top. From there we can take a catwalk bridge over to a roof top access point. That is our way in."

"They'll have this stairway covered. Even with the cover of night fall we'll still need a distraction."

Rinoa's grin widened even further. "Already thought of that. We called in a favor with the Blue Falcons. They will set up rocket teams and snipers to attack the front and draw out the forces in back so that we can sneak in."

Rinoa turned back to the others. "We're done here. Let's get back to the van."

Once everyone had gotten back into the van it had been time to get ready and decide who was doing what. The SeeDs readied themselves with their weapons and gear, putting all their things into duffel bags. Squall packed his G34 pistol, M416 carbine, a few spare mags, a fighting knife and Revolver. Zell grabbed one of M4's the Owls had along with Selphie's G17 pistol and throwing knives. He'd lost his pistol on during the train attack. Selphie readied her M249 Saw with one 100 round drum and had one spare ready to go then holstered her nunchuck. She took out six frag grenades she brought and gave two each to Squall and Zell. The plan was to gear up after they made it into the tunnel. The Forest Owls grabbed the M4's and G36's they had at the train house along with spare mags and body armor. Dylan and Rinoa decided that everyone except for Watts and Zone would go with the SeeDs to get Deling. They would keep the van running in the parking lot of the pub.

The van pulled into the pub parking lot around quarter to ten. As everyone got out of the van Watts got Rinoa's attention.

"I just got off the phone with the Falcons. They're all in place. They will commence their attack in exactly fifteen minutes. They say that if we can actually pull this off every resistance group in Timber is gonna owe the Forest Owls big time."

"We'll be waiting off to the right of the bar. Just make sure you guys get your asses back here." Zone added.

Rinoa smiled and pulled both of them into a tight hug. "Wish us luck guys…for Timber, and our fallen comrades."

Zone and Watts hugged her back. As Squall pulled his duffel bag out of the van he looked over at the group embrace. He found himself wondering for a moment what it was like to have real friends to rely on. To have someone there to pat you on the back when you've done well and hold your hand when times get tough. Rinoa seemed to have such a positive outlook and free spirit even with the Galbadian occupation. Even after everything that happened, she remained hopeful for a better tomorrow.

Rinoa looked up and noticed Squall looking deeply at the sight of the three of them. However she didn't see any annoyance or impatience in his gaze as she normally did. She instead saw loneliness and even…jealousy. Rinoa couldn't figure this Squall Leonhart out. He comes off as such a stand offish know-it-all, showing nothing but disrespect and negativity towards her and the Owls. Yet she's caught him several times looking at her with intrigue. Squall looked away real quick and walked over to the others. Rinoa let go of Zone and Watts and smiled one last time at them then grabbed her own duffel bag and caught up with Squall.

She didn't know why but he seemed to be able to stay on her mind. Somehow, Leonhart was different. He had the same strength, courage and determination that she'd seen in Seifer. And she'd seen first hand just how tough and well trained Squall was. But Squall didn't have the ego that Seifer had. Rinoa had only been involved with Seifer for a short time before she realized that he was about as self-centered as they come and saw women as pretty objects to be played with when he felt like it. She didn't want to admit that Squall was right about Seifer the last time he'd been brought up at the market. The relationship hadn't lasted long but the two had remained on friendly terms. And he did arrange the meet between her and Cid.

But Squall was different from Seifer in that sense too. When Rinoa caught Squall checking her out, she saw a look of wonder and astonishment on his face, not some look as if Rinoa was a play thing. And even though Squall's social skills were none existent and he could be disrespectful jerk, he was never arrogant about it. He simply told them how it was and why he believed it was that way.

_Not to mention that he's cute as hell and has one nice body Heartilly._

Rinoa shook off that train of thought. The shit was about to hit the proverbial fan in a few minutes and she knew she had to focus on that. As they walked across the parking lot to the pub, Rinoa was half startled by Squall's voice.

"So, you seem to be real close with Watts and Zone."

Rinoa looked over at him as they continued to walk. "We are. I ran away from my father in Galbadia at the age of fifteen. When I got here, I had no money and no where to go. Watts and Zone took me in, got me a job and let me stay with them for free. After a while the Galbadian occupation got worse. All around us, city started to crumble financially and culturally. We knew of resistance groups fighting against the Badians and decided to start our own. That's when we met up with Dylan. We started recruiting and the rest is history."

Squall didn't answer back, he only nodded. He opened the door and held it for Rinoa who nodded back in gratitude and walked in.

The Aphora Pub was a small building. Off to the left of the entrance was the main bar itself. Bottles of different liquors lined the shelves behind it while beer taps came up through the floor from the basement. To the right was a grouping of tables and booths and a large flat screen TV suspended from the ceiling. It was crowded and dimly lit and had the smell of stale beer and cigar smoke. Definitely not the type of place Rinoa liked visit.

Everyone moved off to the right of the entrance while Dylan walked over to the bar tender and whispered something into her ear. She nodded to him and pointed to a door on the other side of the room.

Rinoa leaned over to the SeeDs. "The bar tender is a resistance member. She's a good friend of Dylan's."

The SeeDs nodded and waited for the next move. Dylan finished talking to the bar tender and waved the group over to him. They made their way over to the other door and exited out through the back.

Outside there was a long narrow stone pathway that had a stone wall on one side and the backs of apartment buildings and town houses on the other. Cardboard boxes and wooden crates were stacked up, full of empty bottles and other garbage.

Rinoa pointed forward. "The stairs are way down at the other end of the path."

Squall saw that the path appeared to be several city blocks long but was clear of security for now. He held his hand up to get everyone's attention.

"Ok, lets gear up. Leave the duffel bags here though. We'll grab them on the way back. When we get to the other side of the service path, we'll hide at the bottom of the stairs using the cover of darkness and wait for the attack to commence."

Zell looked up at the building that was at the far end of the path. "Hey, look at that huge TV on the building up there."

"That's one of the TV station buildings," Rinoa replied. "It's the one with the stairs we'll be using.

"What's with the red lines on the screen? It looks like static." Selphie asked.

Squall looked up. "That's the global interference signal. It's just line after line of red code. If they want to broadcast that's the signal they're gonna have to get around it."

Takada walked over to Squall. "There's a few large TV's like that scattered over different parts of Wolfsburg. Usually every one of them is off or powered down. This is the first time I've seen one on in quite some time."

"That's gotta mean they're getting ready to try something." Dylan stated.

Squall leaned over and unzipped his bag. "Let's get ready."

Everyone looked around for a moment then got right to unpacking their gear. The SeeDs unpacked their duty belts and put them on then holstered their weapons, grenades and spare ammunition. They also put their body armor, masks and helmets back on. Selphie slid her nunchuck into a special case on the back of her belt. Squall decided he would use the belt holster for his gunblade instead of the back holster.

Rinoa, Dylan, Walters, Higgins and Takada loaded their M-4's and G36's and slung them over their shoulders. Rinoa strapped on her own duty belt, holstered her P226 then slipped her crossbow onto her wrist.

Once everyone was geared up Squall turned to the Forest Owls. "Look, before we go in there I should tell you that me, Zell and Selphie can't be seen on TV. Even with the gear on. They could still figure out that we're from Garden. We'll destroy the cameras before we let that happen."

Dylan and Rinoa nodded. "Fair enough, we all talked it over and I decided I'll be the only one to take off my mask and go on camera," Dylan said. "Rinoa can't do it. It might get her dad killed back in Galbadia."

Squall walked over to the ladder. "Alright, let's move."

The SeeDs and Owls quickly and silently made their way forward, passing the back lots of apartment buildings and the back yards of town houses. Some had high fences and others had fencing that was only waist high. And some of the properties were well lit while others were totally dark. The group made sure to move extra fast past properties that were lit with lower fencing. Luckily, only three properties had that exact set up. When they got to the final apartment building before the TV station building, Squall signaled for the group to stop and hold position momentarily. It was pitch black and there wasn't a single sound. He quickly surveyed the immediate area and saw nothing. He turned back to the others.

"Nothing. No guards, no cameras."

"But Deling has got to be up there. There is too much military presence for this to be another trap." Dylan said.

Squall nodded. "I agree. They probably just ignored these stairs and more than likely simply have the roof covered. Whatever the reason, we should move now."

Squall ran over to the gate at the end of the path first and pushed it open. Zell and Selphie were next followed by the Owls. They all huddled into a tight circle, keeping an eye out in all directions.

Rinoa checked her watch then leaned over to Squall. "The attack should be starting in exactly five minutes so-"

Rinoa was cut off as the screen above them started to flash and turn to black and white static before a picture cut in. It was a podium with the Galbadian banner on it with Galbadian flags off to the right and the left. Behind it was fancy red curtain with yellow trim. Suddenly a blonde man in a dark blue suit walked into view and stood at the podium.

"Ladies and gentleman, I am Rictor Thorn, Presidential Spokesperson for Galbadia. This is no prerecorded address on cable, it is an actual TV broadcast over the air. It has been seventeen years since a live broadcast was possible. Only the great strength and wisdom of the Galbadian people could have overcome the global interference. And now, we would like to bring you a message from the lifelong President of Galbadia, Vinzer Deling."

"Holy shit dude, they did it," Zell said to Squall.

"Well, would ya look at that," Dylan whispered out loud.

Squall quietly watched Rictor Thorn walk off and an older looking man with dark hair walked into view. Squall recognized him immediately.

"We got Deling. Now we know he's in there. The second the attack starts we rush in and get him then you can make your announcement. Then we get out quick."

Deling tapped the microphone then cleared his throat. "Ladies and gentleman, I am Vinzer Deling, President of the mighty nation of Galbadia. Today I come with a very important message for all the world's citizens. The people of this world have the power to end all wars. Unfortunately, there are some trifling problems between Galbadia and several other nations, and they must be resolved. I plan to convene new meetings with the Global Confederacy of Nations and meet with the leaders of these nations to resolve our differences. At this time, I would like to introduce my new ambassador that will accompany me to the GCN peace talks. That ambassador is the Sorceress Edea!"

Squall's jaw dropped. "What?!"

Edea was currently the only known living Sorceress in the world. Rumors of her existence had first surfaced in Kadia and Galbadia years ago through several photos of her that got out to the media. She had up until now, remained hidden from the public eye, opting to stay in the shadows. No real information was known about her, including where she came from or when she received her powers.

Squall continued to remain glued to the screen; he wanted to get a good look at her.

"And now ladies and gentleman, the Sorceress_-_"

Deling's words were cut off by a ruckus heard in the background. The camera showed Deling back up in fear and a white coated individual run into view, knocking the camera over as he did. Several guards grabbed him but he wrestled and punched his way free then drew a gunblade and grabbed Deling. Putting the blade to Deling's throat, he turned to the camera.

Squall's blood ran cold and he stood to zoom in on the attacker.

"Seifer," Squall and Rinoa exclaimed simultaneously.

"You gotta be fucking kidding me!" Zell exclaimed.

"What's he doing!?" Selphie yelled.

Before they could come up with an answer, the SeeDs watched a woman with a bandanna tied around the lower part of her face run onto the screen lashing at several elite Dragoons with her whip. She knocked the rifle out of one's hand then used the spell push to throw him across the room. The other one rushed in and nailed her in the back with the stock of his rifle dropping her to her knees.

"Thats gotta be Quistis," Squall stated in a dead tone. "What the fuck is going on?"

Quistis couldn't get up fast enough before the Dragoon ran in and kneed her directly in the face. She flew back and rolled to her feet then shot a magic bolt of lightning from her hand. The Dragoon blocked it with using shell magic then raised his rifle. Quistis, thinking fast, jumped over to where Seifer was standing. The Dragoons wouldn't risk firing if they thought they might hit Deling.

Quistis turned to the camera. "Wolfsburg team, if you can see this, get over here right now, I need help!"

Squall turned to the entire group. "New plan. We go in and rescue Quistis. Seifer is to be either killed or captured. We can't let him blab to the Badians that we're all from Garden."

"You're going to kill him? But he helped the Owls out, he's my friend! And what about our air time?" Rinoa questioned.

"Seifer is a direct threat to Garden and that means he is priority one to any Garden soldier. I suggest you Owls go back to the van and wait there."

"No." Dylan said. "We are going in with you. You guys deal with him while we grab Deling and get our message out."

"Fine, whatever, let's go!" Squall commanded.

The group took off up the steps as fast as they could. When they got to the top the stairs ended and a long metal bridge led from the smaller building they were at now to the larger main tower of the TV station. There was another set of stairs on the far end that led up to a large open roof top area. They regrouped by the start of the bridge and waited for Squall's signal.

"The entrance is at the far end of that roof top," Dylan said as he pointed.

"Stay low and move fast, Go!"

As the group moved across the bridge, Rinoa's watch beeped. "It's been five minutes."

Right as she finished the sentence the building in front of the TV station lit up. Several dozen rocket and sniper teams opened up on the garrison that was guarding the front entrance. Absolute chaos broke out. Several of the rockets hit one of the Hunters throwing it back, crashing into the building. The soldiers on the ground scrambled for cover while being picked off by sniper fire. The Galbadians returned fire on the cluster of buildings. The other Hunter left its position by the side entrance to help out with the fighting. This left the bridge open for the group to slip inside unnoticed.

The SeeDs and the Forest Owls bolted across the bridge, trying to get to the side roof entrance. Several Dragoon snipers on the roof top that had been shooting towards the building noticed the Seeds sprinting across the bridge and turned their fire on them. The SeeDs immediately used protect spells to provide cover while the Owls reached around the SeeDs and returned fire on the sniper positions. Two of the three snipers were hit and went down. The third disappeared out of sight.

Suddenly Squall noticed the tank come into view. For a moment he thought that the tank had seen them and that the gig was up. No spell they could cast would protect them from a tank shell. But the turret on the tank turned to the buildings. A thunderous roar exploded through the air as the tank went off. The round punched through one of the buildings before going off, bringing the entire building to the ground. Half of the fire coming from the resistance groups stopped and the Galbadian forces on the ground advanced towards the resistance positions.

Everyone watched in horror as the troops entered the buildings, killing everyone in their path.

Squall turned to the group. "They've got their attention, nows our chance."

The group scaled the second set of stairs to the roof and ran for the set of double doors up ahead. Several guards were on the roof but their focus was on the front entrance were the firefight had broken out. The SeeDs and Owls used the opportunity to shoot them dead from behind. Past that Squall opened fire with his assault rifle, shooting out the look on the door. Squall ran up to the doors and used his GF enhanced strength to kick the doors in. As the group entered, the remaining sniper popped up from behind a large AC unit and opened fire. The SeeDs where already inside and couldn't get back out fast enough. One of the rounds caught Takada right in the lung causing him to let out a blood gurgling moan as he crashed to the ground in mid-stride. Dylan and Higgins saw the sniper and returned fire, nailing the sniper several dozen times in the chest. The Dragoon sniper continued to fire as he dropped to the ground then became motionless.

Dylan covered Higgins as he made his way over Takada who was rapidly bleeding out. He grabbed Takada's ankle and dragged him into the building. Rinoa and Selphie ran over to him as Squall and Zell ripped railing off the wall to secure to doors with. Walters covered them. They were in a long corridor that led to the main studio

"Ah Tak," Rinoa began.

Selphie used a cure spell on him and applied pressure to the wound but it was no use. Before Selphie could get the rest of her medical stuff off her duty belt, Takada took one last labored breath then went limp.

Dylan walked over to him and gently pulled his eye lids down. The SeeDs stood back for a second to let Dylan pull Rinoa away from him so that they could keep going.

"We have to go Rin, he'd want us to keep going."

Rinoa eyes started to well up with tears again. Then she saw Squall looking at her and immediately sucked it all back in, willing herself not to break down.

Squall walked forward to address the group. "Down the hall is the entrance to the studio I'm guessing. I want you Owls to guard that entrance while we go in and get Deling and Quistis and if we can, Seifer. Once we are out, we'll give Deling to you and get Seifer and Quistis out of here."

Dylan looked up. "Ok, sounds like a plan. We'll…we'll leave Takada here. We have no choice."

Just then a bang was heard at the door. The group heard shouts from outside the doors. "I saw them go in here! Get reinforcements over here now! We don't have enough people covering Deling."

Dylan turned to Squall. "Go! We'll cover these doors!"

Squall nodded then signaled for Zell and Selphie to follow him. They ran down the hall to the doors to the studio. Squall signaled for Selphie to open one of the doors while Squall and Zell went in, sweeping right and left. Selphie nodded then walked over to the door and counted down from three with her fingers. She yanked the door open the Squall and Zell rushed in. At the center of the studio was Deling, Seifer and Quistis. Two armed soldiers had them backed to the wall. Zell and Squall fired their weapons killing the two guards instantly. Then they approached Seifer. Quistis ran over to Zell's right side and holstered her whip. Seifer continued to hold his blade to Deling's throat.

"It's about time you guys got here."

"Traffic," Zell replied.

Quistis looked over to Squall. "We need to restrain him."

"Or kill him," Squall suggested. He turned his attention to Seifer. "What the hell are you doing?"

Seifer sneered. "Isn't it obvious? What were you planning on doing with this lump of shit? Now I'll get the credit and the glory"

"How did you know…?" Then it hit Squall. Seifer had been Rinoa's connection to Garden. She probably had told him what they had planned to do.

Zell chimed in. "I get it Seifer. You were trying to play the boyfriend role like your some kind of hard ass."

"Shut the hell up Dintch, you chicken shit nobody!" Seifer hissed.

Suddenly gunfire could be heard from farther down the hall. Quistis and Squall looked back towards the doors then each other. "He broke out of the brig then knocked me out when I tried to stop him."

Zell was seething from Seifer's treachery. "Seifer, you stupid, fucking shit!"

"Zell, chill out." Squall commanded

But Zell was already speaking. "Wait till we get you back to Garden asshole!"

"No Zell!" Squall thundered. He immediately turned and shot out all three cameras.

But it was too late. Deling started to chuckle and shake his head. "Ah, I see, you're all from Garden. But which one I wonder? No matter, if anything happens too me, all three Gardens will be destroyed by the might of Galbadian military."

Deling chuckled again as Zell let his shoulders drop dejectedly. He knew he had just screwed up. If anything happen to Garden because of him he'd never forgive himself.

Deling turned slightly to Seifer. "You can let me go now you arrogant little shit."

Seifer shook his head and looked over to Zell. "Nice going chicken shit. You and that mouth of yours."

Outside, the sounds of gunfire got closer and louder. Seifer pulled Deling in close and cut into his neck slightly. "Ok dick head, you're coming with me. Squall, why don't you and the gang stay and clean up this mess? It sounds like the Badians will be here any second."

Seifer dragged Deling along as he walked backwards into an adjacent hall that led to a second, smaller studio. Squall and the others kept their distance. Once back there, Seifer pressed the blade against Deling's throat. "Ready to die?"

"What?! Y-You can't kill me, I know you're from Garden. I-I'll…"

"You won't do anything once I lop your fucking head clean off you're shoulders!"

Suddenly a chilling laughter erupted from within the room. Seifer looked up and watched as the wall in front of him started to morph into a liquid form. Then a figure walked through it into the studio.

It was a woman. She was pale skinned and dressed in a tight back gown that covered her entire body, showing off her devilish curves. Her hands were covered with long gloves that went up to her elbows. A long slit in the front of her gown left a large V-shaped area of skin exposed on the front of her. From her shoulders down to almost her naval was open, showing off her flat stomach and ample cleavage. Her head and face was covered by some grotesque-looking red mask and a large head dress that had horns running out of it. Only her mouth showed through. She was both beautiful and terrifying at the same time.

Seifer felt genuinely spooked and turned on by this woman. Was this the Sorceress? He'd never been intimidated by any man in his life and yet he was intimidated by a woman that couldn't have stood over 5'7. But Seifer wasn't about to drop his guard so easily.

She walked forward and spoke. "Poor, poor boy."

"Stay the hell away from me lady!"

"Such a confused little boy. Are you going to advance? Retreat? You have to decide."

"Stay back!"

Quistis and Squall ran into the room followed by Zell and Selphie. The woman in black held her hand up and used a powerful shift spell to throw all four SeeDs back, slamming them into the wall. She ignored them then continued her barrage on Seifer.

"The boy in you is telling you to come forward but the adult in you is demanding that you stay away. You can't make up your mind. You don't know the right answer. You want help don't you? You want to be saved from this predicament."

Seifer's grip on Deling had relaxed and his hand holding Hyperion was shaking. "S-Shut up!"

"Don't be afraid little boy."

"I'm not…s-stop calling me a boy."

She walked closer to Seifer, within close range for him to strike her down with his gunblade. "You don't want to be a little boy anymore?"

"I'm not a boy!"

Squall shook his head. "Seifer, she's mind fucking ya! Kill the bitch-"

Squall was silenced again as the woman raised her hand and slammed Squall into the wall again. She smiled then looked up to Seifer and widened her grin. She gestured for Seifer to walk over to her. Seifer had a catatonic look in his eyes and let go of Deling who quickly ran off.

"Come with me to a place of no return. Bid farewell to your childhood and open your arms to my eternal darkness."

Seifer turned to the SeeDs and waved to them. Squall noticed that he looked like he was hypnotized. Then he turned and followed the woman through the wall as she cast another form spell. The wall solidified again, leaving the SeeDs alone in the room.

Zell threw his arms up. "What the fuck was that?"

Quistis used the wall to help her up. "That must have been Sorceress Edea. She's the only living active Sorceress on the planet and it looks like she's _venefica_."

"She's what?" Selphie inquired.

Squall slowly got to his feet. "It means that she's become dark and insane from her powers. It's an old Centran term for an evil sorceresses. A witch."

The term witch was used as a vulgar, derogatory slang term used to describe an evil sorceress. It was also used as a general insult toward any sorceress called it.

"Hey guys!"

Everyone turned and ran back into the main studio to find Rinoa looking around. When she saw them she noticed that the female who'd rushed in with Seifer was with them now, probably another SeeD.

"We held off the first wave of Galbadian regulars but I think their coming in with Dragoons next."

Squall waved everyone forward. "We have to get out of here now. Back out across the roof and then across the causeway."

Just then Dylan, Walters and Higgins ran in to get the others. "Hey, we held 'em off but we got to get outta here."

The group turned to leave but before they could Dragoons kicked in the door in the other studio and poured in. Five elite Dragoons ran through the studio and into the main studio where the SeeDs and remaining Owls stood. They caught the SeeDs by surprise as they rushed in. Squall turned to raise his rifle but one of the Dragoons armed with a sword used enhanced speed to rush in and slice it right down the middle. Squall dropped it and used his own enhanced speed to draw Revolver out and swipe at him simultaneously. The elite soldier parried the attack and tackled Squall to the ground. The rest of the SeeD's slung their rifles and drew their melee weapons then charged the group of Dragoons. Zell pulled one of his knives and charged into the group, leaping into the air and jump kicking the first Dragoon he saw. Quistis and Selphie charged into the group swinging their weapons.

Meanwhile a group of charger regulars charged in through the other entrance. Dylan and Rinoa, along with Walters and Higgins, ran to the hall and opened fire.

Back inside, Squall lunged at the Dragoon with his blade. The elite soldier swiped it away and rolled behind him then turned and swung his blade, nicking Squall across the back. Squall clenched his teeth from the pain and spun around. Casting a shift spell, he caught the Dragoon off guard and pushed him to the ground. Squall wasted no time and rushed in for the kill, ramming his blade straight through the soldier's neck. He immediately went limp. He looked up and saw that his fellow SeeDs had finished off their opponents and stood breathing heavily. Banged up, bruised and cut, he called everyone to regroup. They turned to see the Owls return, rushing back into the room.

Dylan put a fresh magazine into his rifle. "It's clear for the moment, but we have to get out of here now!"

Squall nodded and holstered Revolver then picked up one of the rifles on the ground. As they began to leave the studio, Higgins ran back in to grab another rifle. His M-4 had run dry and he had no spare ammo for it. He ran over and picked up one of the rifles on the ground then started to run back.

"Hey, wait up!'

Dylan and Zell turned to wait for him. Suddenly Zell spotted one of the Dragoons on the ground moving slightly, reaching for his side arm.

"Higgins, behind you!" Zell went to pull his side arm.

Higgins spun around to find his target but the Dragoon was faster. He pulled his side arm and fired one round off, shooting Higgins directly through the side of the head. He was dead before he hit the ground. The Dragoon then turned to fire on the others but Zell had him lined up. He fired three rounds, nailing the soldier in the chest and head, killing him.

The others ran back in and found Zell standing over Dylan. Dylan had knelt down next to the body of Higgins.

Zell shook his head. "One of the Dragoons was still alive and got a shot off."

Rinoa put her hands to her mouth. "Oh my God, this can't be happening."

The group was jolted by the sound of more soldiers coming through the smaller studio. Squall grabbed two grenades off the belt of a dead Dragoon and flung them into the next room. Two loud explosions shook the room followed by painful screams.

"We are leaving."

The group made their way down the hall and out through double doors onto the roof top.

Squall turned and saw that most of the Galbadian forces were still fighting with resistance members in several buildings across from the TV station. More rebel groups must have joined in on the fight. "It's clear, let's go. I want the Owls to stay behind us. SeeDs stay upfront. We have the two primary Owl members to protect."

Just as they made it halfway across the roof back to the stairs, a large group of left over Galbadian regulars came through the double doors behind them and immediately opened fire. The group scattered in all directions. Squall rushed at Rinoa and shoved her to the ground just as one of the soldiers opened fire in her direction. They hit the ground together but Squall rolled to his feet and returned fire, hitting his opponent several times in the chest. The soldier spun around and crumpled to the ground but not before a burst of rounds struck Squall in the chest armor and the shoulder. He fell back and ran to Rinoa's position. Rinoa had recovered her footing and started launching explosive arrows.

Zell grabbed both his grenades and pulled the pins then lobbed them both over to the location of the Galbadian soldiers. The resulting explosions sent one soldier flying backwards and shredded another three to pieces. Then he took cover next to Walters and they both began firing. Selphie rolled over to her right and braced the SAW against and exhaust fan then opened up on the Galbadians, dropping two that didn't make it to cover. Quistis had set up next to her and grabbed one of Selphie's grenades off her belt and pulled the pin then threw it far off to their left flank. The grenade went off, killing a sniper. Another soldier with a machine gun opened up on their position. A bullet struck Selphie on the outside of the quadricep of her right leg. Selphie yelped then gritted her teeth and casted a protect spell. She then returned fire, emptying the remaining rounds of her drum magazine in his direction. The rounds didn't hit him but pinned the G-army soldier down, giving Selphie the time to lob her remaining grenade in his direction, blowing him apart. She ripped the empty drum mag out and began loading the spare one in.

The group had managed to push the Badian soldier back but then a group of Dragoons came through he same double doors and immediately opened up of the SeeDs and Owls. One of the Dragoons had a revolver style grenade launcher and emptied all six rounds into the groups position.

"Shit!" Dylan yelled.

The rounds went off and sent the group flying back in all directions. Shrapnel and debris flew everywhere and not a single member of the SeeDs or Owls managed to weather the explosions with out injury. After the explosions went off the the shooting stopped and a silence set in for a moment. Squall, his ears still ringing, recovered quickly and looked around him. Everyone was cut and bloodied but the SeeDs all hand signaled over to him that they were ok. He looked over to Dylan and Rinoa but their focus was on Walters. He was slumped over against a large ventilation fan which was shredded from the blasts. Walter's right arm was gone and he'd been impaled on a large piece of shrapnel. It was clear that he was dead.

"Shit! This is a Hyne damned cluster fuck," Squall gritted. He got the attention of the SeeDs and hand signaled to them to launch a volley of their strongest magic attacks on his word. The Dragoons continued to slowly advance on the SeeD's position, unable to see exactly where they were due to the amount of dust that had been kicked up. As soon as they moved into a clearing with no available cover, Squall gave the signal. Selphie and Zell jumped up and let lose fire ball attacks, Squall shot out his strongest lighting attack and Quistis launched large ice spears. The Dragoons, unprepared to block magic attacks, were instantly destroyed by the magic strikes. The fighting finally ended and the roof top of the TV station looked like a blood bath with bodies scattered everywhere.

Squall addressed the group. "We are moving. Now."

Just as the got to got to the stairs and began descending a single remaining G-army sniper popped out from the double doors and opened up on them. One bullet struck Zell in the back armor and flung him forward. Dylan raised his rifle and fired back. Rounds from both weapons hit their marks. The Galbadian was shot through the head and shoulder and was killed. Rounds from his rifle nailed Dylan through the lung and stomach. He collapsed to the ground and yelled out that he was hit. Rinoa ran over and slid down next to him. He gave her his hand and Rinoa took it. He was bleeding profusely and a pool of blood started to encompass him. Zell got back on his feet and ran over to join in with Selphie. They worked frantically on the wounds while Quistis kept an eye out for anymore enemy forces. Squall knelt down next to Rinoa, watching Dylan die right in front of him. Squall had been hired to keep this man alive and he had failed. And Dylan would lose his life because of it.

"Rin," Dylan said weakly.

"Yea buddy," Rinoa replied. She couldn't hold back the tears any longer. Not when it was Dylan. They had been friends and comrades for years. Tears ran down her cheeks.

"Don't give up hope of a free Timber. Keep fighting. You have more strength and courage in you then you realize. I will miss you my friend."

"I won't give up Dylan. I swear it to you."

Dylan turned to Squall. "Squall, promise me."

Squall leaned in close to Dylan and looked up to Zell. He and Selphie had stopped working on Dylan and now sat quietly listening to Dylan's last words.

"What is it that you ask of me?"

"I want you to continue to protect Rinoa. You're our soldiers and we need you. Promise that you won't give up on Timber and that you will keep Rinoa safe." Dylan took Rinoa's hand and gave it to Squall. Rinoa and Squall touched and looked into each other's eyes then back down at Dylan.

"I promise."

Dylan smiled before his eyes glazed over and closed one last time. Rinoa leaned and cradled his head against her, giving her friend one last hug.

Squall took Rinoa by the arm and pulled her away from Dylan. They weren't home free yet. They had to make it down to the van. Squall then switched up and grabbed Rinoa's hand and ran with the rest of the group down the stairs and then across the bridge.

"Hunter!" Quistis screamed. The group turned to see one of the walking tanks coming around the building.

The Hunter opened fire but the group was already around the corner of the other building. They made their way down the first set of stairs and sprinted through the service tunnel, grabbing the bags as they flung the back door to the bar open. However, the bar was empty. They raced through and went out the front. When they came out through the front entrance to the bar, they found everyone standing in the parking looking up and over at the TV station and the smoke rising from the buildings next to it. More and more people poured out of their homes to see what was happening. They slipped through the crowd and ran to the van. Several people looked at them and gasped and began to point. They were in battle gear and covered in blood and wounds. Watt's opened the side door and helped everyone in then yelled for Zone to take off. Zone hit the gas and the van took off. Watt's looked at the group. They were dirty, bloody and battered looking and they had a new female with them.

"What happened?" he asked.

"We failed." Squall replied.

Zone turned back and looked over to Rinoa. He saw the look in her eyes and knew but still had to ask. "Where are the others?"

New tears streamed down her face and she looked away from him. "They're dead."

* * *

**Notes**

Well that didn't go so well but I think its a realistic take on how things would have played out. Obviously I killed off several characters including almost all the Owls but I felt that was necessary to drive home the visceral feeling of real urban warfare and guerrilla tactics. I also wanted to make sure the SeeDs got banged up and didn't make it through the fight with out a single scratch simply because they are main characters. In my stories, I beat the shit out of everyone.


	15. Plan C

**Chapter 15**

**Plan C**

Monday, May 9th 2217NE

11:51pm

The city was in an absolute state of chaos. As the SeeDs and the Forest Owls fled, mayhem broke out as more and more Galbadian troops poured into Wolfsburg from other bases in Timber. They watched from their windows as Galbadian tanks and mechanized walkers patrolled the highways while troops stood on every corner and in every alleyway. They watched troops rounding up citizens, raiding homes and businesses and searching cars. They saw dozens upon dozens of citizens pushed to the ground and beaten. Their attempt to capture Deling had failed. And the fall out they were seeing now was a consequence that neither the Owls nor the SeeD team had thought to consider.

While the roar of the city's fall out raged outside on the streets, inside the van was a quiet and somber environment. The first thing they'd done is treat each other wounds and injuries. Luckily, Rinoa had only sustained minor lacerations and contusions and a single deeper wound from shrapnel. The SeeDs had taken most bullet strikes center mass to the body armor. Several wounds had been sustained to the limbs but between the GF enhancements and magic they'd all recover quickly enough and could still fight.

Squall looked around the van. Upfront, Zone and Watts navigated the streets, trying desperately to get them back to the warehouse with out running into military road blocks and check points. In the back, Quistis, Zell and Selphie sat together, none of them bothering to speak a single word. They looked exhausted; Squall knew they'd have to find some place safe to crash for tonight.

Rinoa looked both devastated and shocked. She did the best she could to look strong but every now and then you could hear a quiet sob coming from her direction. Squall didn't know how to feel. He was angry at himself for failing to protect his client but he was also angry with Rinoa for being so damn stubborn. He told the Owls not to rush this plan as he had told them not to rush the train strike and they hadn't listened and now most of them were dead. But Squall also felt bad for Rinoa. He knew that their hearts had been in the right place, they only wanted the best for Timber. To see her so hurt and upset and defeated gave Squall that sting in the center of his chest again. He didn't know what to make of it. Never before had he remembered feeling so terrible over another person's grief. It couldn't be that he had feelings for her. Squall just wouldn't accept that fact. He would just keep telling himself that he felt nothing for her and that she was just a job.

But right now was not the time to be thinking of feelings for girls. The group was still in danger and Squall knew that he had to get them out of the city and maybe even the country. The first move was to find shelter and a place to rest for the night. They needed to get back to the warehouse and gather what they could then leave as quickly as possible. Squall had a feeling the Badians would be searching every train yard and warehouse district before the night was over.

He tapped Watts on the shoulder. "Watts, how much further to the warehouse?"

"Another five minutes sir."

Squall nodded and sat back down.

Quistis looked up at Squall and then to the other SeeDs. She figured Squall knew what he was doing and let him handle the situation. As the senior ranking officer, Quistis could have taken over command the second she met up with them but continued to let Squall lead. At this point pulling rank would prove to be detrimental to them working together since everyone was used to Squall making the calls. Plus she didn't know the other three people in the van but guessed that they were Squall's clients. One thing she did notice was Squall and the raven haired girl. She kept catching Squall looking up at the girl with a concerned look on his face. Not the look of a mercenary checking on the status of their client but the look of a man checking on the welfare of a woman he had feelings for. But that wasn't the Squall she knew. Quistis shook off the thought. There would be a later time to get the story so far.

The van pulled into the warehouse and came to a stop. Everyone jumped out of the van and stretched for a moment then made their way upstairs to the room they had planed the strike in. Rinoa, Zone and Watts sat on one side, the SeeDs on the other.

Zone was the first to speak. "What do we do now?"

"The city is being torn apart while they look for us. I can't believe this is happening. People are being hurt because of us. If we hadn't tried to…" Watts trailed off as his head slumped down. He was trying not to cry, not to let anyone see his tears. Zone rubbed his shoulder.

Squall and the other SeeDs were silent. Squall was still pretty pissed at the whole situation and decided it best to stay quiet for the moment.

Zone looked over to Rinoa. "What do we do now Rin?"

Rinoa looked away from the group. The tears were slowly starting to run down her cheeks again and she didn't want to show it. She turned to Squall and looked to him for help. She was frightened, exhausted, out of ideas and on the verge of panic.

Squall put his hands up. "Yes?"

"What do you think we should do?" Rinoa asked.

"So now you want my opinion. You didn't want to hear it during the strike on the train or while trying to grab Deling. You've gotten your asses kicked twice today and you all could have avoided it if you had listened to us. Your group has been destroyed and the entire city is on high alert. And now it's only a matter of time until the military finds this warehouse and takes us out. Four SeeDs are no match against the entire Badian division they'll send after us probably. So what exactly do you want me to tell you?"

Rinoa's face went blank but Squall could see the anger in her eyes. She stood and set both her hands on the table then looked Squall square in the eyes. "You think our cause and our group is bullshit don't you?"

Squall stood to meet her eyes. "Just how serious are you about all of this? I mean you hire three SeeDs to help you overthrow the Galbadians and then rush in to every situation head first like a bunch of amateurs. You're not soldiers; you're just a bunch of kids who have no idea what the fuck you're doing. Your friends are dead because you planned the whole thing on a Hyne damned chalk board! And you almost got my team killed as a result! So excuse me if I'm a little insulted that you would now ask me what to do!"

Rinoa's eyes narrowed in rage. "You know what Squall, we are amateurs. We don't know as much as you guys about weapons, fighting or tactics. That's why we hired you people. But what did you do? You wrote us off as losers the second you showed up. What kind of professional does that make you? And at least we believe in something. You people are nothing more than money grubbing pieces of shit that kill and murder for the highest bidder! You don't believe in anything!"

"Ok that is it you stubborn little bit-"

"Squall!" Quistis thundered.

Squall turned to see Quistis giving him one serious death stare. She then turned her attention to Rinoa, who had tears still running down her cheeks and rage in her eyes.

"Ma'am, I am a lieutenant with Balamb Garden and SeeD Special Forces member like Squall. I want to assure you that we do not simply kill for money. We have strict rules we must follow. And I want to apologize for the sergeant's behavior. He is one of our best so he should damn well know better. If you'd like, I could try to have a new team sent here to serve you. It might take awhile but it could be done."

Rinoa snorted then shook her head. "No, I don't want a new team. I'm not sure that I even want SeeD's help anymore. Plus, there's no group left for you to help. I need a minute to think."

Quistis turned to Squall. "Outside sergeant."

Squall followed Quistis out into the hallway. He knew he had just crossed the line in there and had let his temper had gotten the best of him.

"What the hell was that in there? Are you out of your fucking mind? That is a client in there that you just insulted. A client who, by the way, is our only chance of getting out of here alive. If I where her, whoever she is, I would leave us here to be executed by the Galbadians."

Squall threw his arms up. "She's impossible to work with! They all are! The Forest Owls don't know shit about strategy or planning."

"Exactly! Their not SeeDs. That's why they hired us. Just about every client we have is not on our level. You have to learn to be patient with people. And don't let me catch you saying something like that to another client again. I should report you to Gen. Crace for this but since we have to survive this first, I'll put that thought on hold. But know this, he'd pull your ass right out of field work and stick you in a fucking office for a year. And thats only after he demoted back down to private. For now, you will go back in there and apologize to that girl and prey that she doesn't leave us here. By the way, is that the girl that you danced with at the SeeD Ball?"

Squall didn't verbally answer. He only dropped his shoulders and let out a long frustrated sigh.

Quistis threw her arms up and spun around before burying her face in her hands. "Oh this just keeps getting better and better. Leonhart, get your ass back in there and apologize to your date from the dance."

Just as Quistis finished scolding Squall, the door to opened and out marched Rinoa with Angelo on a leash, Zone and Watts behind him. They looked pissed and didn't bother saying anything to either SeeD as they stormed by them on their way to the stair case. The two SeeDs exchanged looks then turned to the room again as Zell and Selphie came running out.

"Their leaving!" Zell announced. "They said we're on our own."

Quistis gave Squall another look of frustration then took off after the remaining Owls, Zell and Selphie behind her. Squall let out a long sigh of frustration and slowly made his way towards the stairs.

Quistis caught up with the group and got in front of them. "Where are you going?"

Zone stepped ahead of Rinoa. "We're leaving. You guys are fired. We're better off with out you."

"He's right." Rinoa added. "Garden has done nothing to help us. We were promised professionals and got people who did nothing but patronize us. I know we aren't experts and I know that the strikes on the train and in the studio weren't well planned but we had only a small window of time we believed Deling would be here." She turned and narrowed her vision on Squall, who was slowly coming down the metal stair case. "Maybe if Garden hadn't taken so long to send us SeeDs, we would've had more time to plan something out."

"What are we supposed to do?" Zell asked.

"Not our fucking problem!" Zone yelled.

Rinoa pointed back to Squall. "Well you're professionals, I'm sure the great and mighty sergeant asshole will think of something. And you won't have us losers around to slow you down."

Quistis put her hands up in a pleading manner. She knew they had a right to be mad but if they split up at this point, both parties would be dead with in hours. "Look, I don't know who you are but I understand how you feel. You just lost your friends and Squall was way out of line. But if we split up, we are all going to die. We won't know where we're going and you will have no one to protect you. We need to stay together."

Zone turned to Rinoa. "We don't need them Rin."

Watts had been quiet up until now but suddenly walked over to Rinoa and gently squeezed her arm.

"She's right Rinny. They don't deserve our help after the way they've acted, but we need them. This is where we can show them our professionalism that they lack. Show them the respect that they haven't shown us. Plus, we are to blame as well. We didn't listen to Squall and the second attack was thrown together on the fly to get back at Deling. It was emotional and vengeance based and thats why it failed. And it cost Dylan his life. Besides, they have your description Rin. Me and Zone can't protect you like they can. You've seen what Squall can do. The guy's a weapon. A killing machine."

Rinoa looked to Watts and bit her bottom lip. This wasn't like her. She wasn't this hateful or vengeful and believed that Watts was right. If they split up now, they would all die. Then Dylan's last words to Squall rang through her mind. She dropped to one knee and rubbed the fur on Angelo's head. "What do you think boy?"

Angelo looked up at Rinoa then looked around the room at everyone else. His ear's sprang up then he turned to Rinoa and licked her face several times. She laughed at his actions and slowly nodded. She understood what he thought.

"Ok, we'll stick together for now. I know of a place we can go. It's safe and we can stay there for the night."

Quistis nodded. "Thank you." She extended her hand for Rinoa to shake. "I don't believe we've been properly introduced."

"I'm Rinoa Heartily."

"Nice to meet you Rinoa. I'm Lieutenant Quistis Trepe" She looked over to Squall then back to Rinoa. "I want to assure you that we will not underestimate or disrespect you again."

"I appreciate it. Now, let's get going. The place I have in mind is a safe house. It's on the outskirts of the town.

Quistis nodded then signaled for Zell and Selphie to get everyone's things. Both the Seeds and the Owls quickly used the bathrooms to clean themselves up the best they could and change out of the uniforms and outfits they'd worn for the strike on the TV station. Squall threw on a pair of blue jeans, a black shirt and his black jacket. He suggested everyone else cover up as much as possible to hide the bandages and wounds from their last fight. Everyone else followed suit except for Quistis, who unfortunately was stuck in the dress she'd worn the whole day. It was torn and battered and bloody so she'd sit in the back out of sight until they got her a change of clothes. The clothes they'd worn to the fight were al tossed into a metal drum and burned.

After everyone had cleaned up and changed, the Owls jumped back into the van while Zell and Selphie packed up the remaining weapons, ammo and gear. Meanwhile, Quistis pulled Squall aside one last time.

"I am going to leave you in charge. This is still your mission and I know you have the skills to get the job done right. Do not make me regret that decision. I know they are amateurs but you're a rookie yourself so try to have a little more patience. That is an order."

Squall nodded quietly as Zell came down the stairs with Squall's bag. He tossed it to Squall who shouldered it then quickly got into the van, careful to avoid eye contact with anyone. He was mad at himself and everyone else and didn't want to speak or think.

Zone put the van into gear and took off. He got the van out of the area as fast as he could onto the highway. It would take approximately twenty minutes to reach the safe house.

* * *

The van was soundless as it moved, no one inside felt like speaking. Zone, Watts and Selphie sat upfront while everyone else sat on the floor up against the sides on the van. Squall stared blankly down, making sure he didn't move his eyes from the floor. He couldn't believe that his first mission had gone so poorly. Most of the clients had been killed and the ones that remained hated him. That second fact shouldn't have bothered Squall but it did slightly. Normally, he could care less who liked or disliked him but this situation was different and he hated that.

_ FUCK! I can't believe I'm in this position right now!? What the hell was Cid thinking sending us out here? He had to have known we wouldn't make a difference. So much for a great start to my career._

Zell looked over to Rinoa. "What exactly is this safe house we're going to?"

"It's a town house in one of the older residential sections of the city. There's never much Galbadian presence there so I figure it's our best bet. The people that live there are resistance members. I'm good friends with them."

"So they'll let us stay for the night?" Quistis asked.

Rinoa nodded. "Yea, I think so. In the morning we can plan our next move."

Quistis nodded then leaned back and closed her eyes. Rinoa looked over to Squall, who was sitting against the wall with his arms crossed looking down at the floor. It looked like he hadn't even been paying attention or didn't really care. He had a serious look of defeat written across his face. But this didn't bring any joy to Rinoa like she thought it would. To her, Squall had acted like a total jerk off so far, and this Quistis woman pulling rank on him and giving him an ear full had been exactly what he had deserved. But at the same time, Rinoa felt bad for him and felt bad about the whole situation. After all, Squall had tried to warn them about both strikes and had been right both times. And he had saved their lives and hers personally, at least two or three times already. Which lead Rinoa to questions that had bothered her since the weapons pick-up.

_ Why had Squall rushed out of cover to take the Badians out? There was no real reason to other then Squall believing that I was in danger. I know I saw them laughing so they must have been talking about killing us. But he still could have played it cool and waited to see if they left on their own. But then he treats us like idiots. I don't get him. And why does he just seem so familiar to me? And where have I seen that gun blade before?_

She'd have to wait until later to ask him. Right now wasn't a good time and Rinoa could clearly tell that Squall was not in a talking mood.

It was 12:32am when the van pulled onto Meadow Street. The street was clear of both police and military presence so Zone pulled the van into the drive way of townhouse and shut the engine off. Zone, Watts and Selphie turned around to face the others.

"Ok, the people who live here are Mr. and Mrs. Arleigh," Rinoa Said. "They have a son and a daughter who are in high school. They're part owners over at the Aphora Pub, that's why we used it. Everyone stay here while I go up to the door and see if this is alright with them. I'll come back and…"

"Selphie…"

Rinoa stopped talking and everyone turned to the back of the van where Squall was sitting. He didn't bother to move or even look up as he spoke. "You will go with Ms. Heartily to the door. The client must be escorted, now more than ever. Plus, you look the least threatening."

Rinoa, along with everyone else, noticed how coldly and professionally Squall had just spoke. Zell looked to Rinoa and then to Quistis then shrugged and looked down. Rinoa let out a quiet sigh.

"Ok Selphie, let's go."

Selphie and Rinoa got out of the van and walked up to the front step. They could see through the window that the house was dark except from the light coming from the TV. Rinoa pushed the button for the door bell. A moment of silence went by before the distinct sounds of movement reverberated through the door. It opened and there stood both Rebecca and Norman Arleigh. They both looked to be in their forties; Rebecca was taller with short brown hair. Norman was also tall with graying black hair. Rebecca spoke first.

"Oh my God, Rinoa!" She stepped out onto the front porch and gripped Rinoa into a bear hug. "Are you ok? We've been watching the news for the past hour or so. We saw the raid on the communications building. Then we heard through the grape vine that the Forest Owls had been wiped out."

Rinoa squeezed her back. "Me, Watts and Zone are fine. Everyone else…"

Rebecca stepped back and looked into Rinoa's eyes. She knew the answer already. Rebecca and Norman exchanged looks of grief, and then Norman looked up.

"Who else is with you?" he asked, trying to change the subject.

Rinoa quickly wiped a tear away then turned to Selphie. "This is Selphie Tilmitt. She and a couple others helped me get out of the tower, which brings us to why we are here. I was wondering if we could stay here for the night. It isn't safe at our base and it would only be for one night. Tomorrow we'd plan something out and go."

Rebecca took her by the hand. "Of course you can stay tonight."

"We wouldn't be good resistance members if we left you out to fend for yourselves." Norman added with a wink.

Rinoa smiled. "Thank you so much. We really owe you."

"We really appreciate it sir!" Selphie exclaimed. She stepped up and bear hugged Norman, picking him right up off the ground. She put him down then ran back down to the van to tell the others.

"She's…stronger than she looks." Rebecca noted.

"She has a lot of energy," Rinoa added.

The sliding side door to the van opened suddenly to reveal a jumping, bubbly Selphie. "They're gonna let us stay!"

"Awesome!" Zell exclaimed.

Watts turned to Zell. "I knew they would. Even with the Badians looking for us, I knew the Arleigh's wouldn't turn us away. They love Rinoa to death."

Squall jumped out of the van. "Ok, everyone out, we need to get out of sight. I don't want a Galbadian patrol to spot us."

Everyone piled out of the van and quickly made their way inside. They dropped the gear off in the hallway then proceeded to the family room. Watts and Zone walked up to the Arleighs, shaking Norman's hand and giving Rebecca hugs. Angelo ran up to Norman and waited his turn. He and Norman always played catch whenever Rinoa brought him over. Then they turned to the four strangers whom Rinoa had brought with her. Rinoa pointed to the SeeDs.

"These four are SeeDs. We hired them to help us. Starting from your right is Selphie, Quistis, Zell and the team leader Squall."

There was an awkward silence between everyone for a moment that Quistis decided to break. She stepped forward. "We really appreciate you taking us in like this. We realize the risk you're taking."

Rebecca waved it off. "Nah, don't worry about it. Norman and I have been part of the resistance for years, even before the Owls got started. We always help them out with aid and supplies."

"You guys must be SeeD Special Forces. That would explain Selphie's increased strength. You have GF junctions."

The SeeD's turned back to Selphie who cracked an uneasy smile. "Sorry, I accidentally picked him up off the ground."

Before anyone could saying anything else the sounds of foot steps coming down the stairs echoed through the room as the Arleigh's teenage children, Donna and Paul, came down to the first floor.

"Dad, what's going on?" Paul asked.

"Rinoa ran into trouble with the Galbadians, so she and her friends are going to stay here for the night."

Paul's eyes lit up. "I knew it! That was you guys on the TV a little while ago. The broadcast and the battle were on every channel. That means that you four are SeeDs! Awesome! I've never met one before."

Norman gave his son a stern look. "Easy there killer, they just got here. Give them a little space."

Donna walked over to Rinoa and took her hand. She had always looked up to Rinoa as if she were an older sister. When they weren't actively doing resistance work, the Owls would often visit and Rinoa and Donna would sneak off to have girl talks about clothes, sports and cute boys.

"Are you ok Rin? Where is everyone else? Where's Dylan?"

The room went silent. Everyone looked over to Donna and then to Rinoa. But she didn't know what to say to the girl. "They…Dylan is…" She trailed off, not able to finish the sentence. She could feel the tears welling up. Up until now, she was able to hold them off fairly well, but now that they had reached so place to rest, the events of today came crashing back down. Rinoa pulled Donna in closer so she wouldn't see the tears start to stream down her cheeks.

Rebecca immediately walked over to Rinoa and put her arm around Rinoa's shoulder. "Why don't we get you something warm to drink Rin. Come on Donna, you can help me out and stay with Rinny. The rest of you can make yourselves at home. Give me a few minutes and then I'll fix up a meal of some sort for everybody."

One hour later the group was spread out over the house. After a makeshift meal consisting of sandwiches, pretzels, potato chips and dill pickles, the group took turns showering then sat down to relax for the night. Zell and Selphie sat on the couch in the family room next to Paul, answering his questions the best they could about Garden and being a SeeD. Quistis sat on the other side of the room, going over strategy with Watts and Zone. Squall had originally wanted to sit with them but Quistis told him to go relax and cool off some more. In the dinning room, Rinoa sat with Norman, Donna and Rebecca, telling them everything that had happened so far. She needed someone to vent to and a shoulder to cry on. That left Squall, who now stood by himself in the kitchen, finishing the last of his iced tea.

As he put the glass into the sink, Norman entered the kitchen. "I'm told that you've saved the group's lives several times, including Rinoa's life. From what I've heard, you put forth most of your effort so far to personally make sure she stayed alive and unharmed. I thank you for that."

"I wouldn't be so fast to thank me. I might have protected her but the rest of the group is dead except for the other two. And we have an entire Badian army after us. So I'm not sure you should be thanking me for anything."

"None the less, those three are still alive. They tell me you are an incredible fighter and a natural leader but you lack social skills."

Squall shrugged. He knew that Norman was really referring to what Rinoa thought of him. "Is that what she thinks now? Well, she's not exactly easy to work with either."

Norman let out a low chuckle. "You know Squall; the biggest part of being a leader isn't being the strongest or the most skilled. Its showing patience and trying to make the others in the group better. It sounds and blatantly appears that they all look up to you as a leader, even her."

"Oh yea, I'm sure I'll get employee of the year back at Garden."

Normal laughed and shook his head.

Squall was quiet for a second then pointed to the sliding doors behind him. "I'm gonna get some air." He slid the glass door to the left and slipped outside onto the wood deck. He walked over to the edge and leaned up against the railing, looking up at the crystal clear night sky. Away from all the light pollution of the city gave a perfect view of the millions of stars scattered across the sky. Squall took a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to clear his mind.

Back inside Rebecca and Rinoa entered the kitchen to find Norman sitting at the kitchen table. Rinoa could just make out Squall through the glass and walked over to the door. "I'm going to see what Squall's up to."

"Ok sweety." Rebecca watched Rinoa go out back then heard Norman giggling to himself. "What's so funny Norm?"

"Isn't it obvious? She likes him. She's got a thing for him."

Rebecca joined her husband at the table. "Yea I sort of noticed that while we where talking in the other room. Rinoa normally doesn't take shit from someone she hardly knows. But she seems fixated on getting on his good side no matter how long it takes her."

Norman nodded slowly. "I think he likes her back but just doesn't want to admit it to anyone, most of all himself. He must be one of those types that don't like to open up to anybody."

Rebecca grinned. "Well if anyone can crack that boy's shell, it's Rinoa."

Back outside Rinoa slowly walked over to where Squall stood. Squall moved his head just slightly enough to make eye contact with her for just a split second.

"Can I help you with something Ms. Heartilly?"

"You don't have to be that formal with me."

"Apparently I do since I'm just an emotionless money grubbing piece of shit merc that does anything for money right?"

"Ok, you know what Squall, I came out here to try and make peace with you. You don't have to be such a dick about it. And in my defense, you guys had that comment coming."

"Whatever."

"Is that your answer to everything? Ya know, I'm sorry you think I'm a weak, immature little girl. But I'm stronger than you think! I have friends that care about me and a righteous cause I believe in. I'm not just some damn..."

Squall spun around. "Some what!? Some damn mercenary? Right? I love how everyone will make us out to be monsters but then turn around and hire SeeD when they need our services. You're just a fucking hypocrite like everyone else!"

"Oh, so SeeDs aren't for sale? You guys aren't just out for the big money grabs. For months we sent in requests to Garden with out hearing anything back. Garden didn't care about a group like us because we're not some rich government. For Hyne's sake, I had to go to my ex to get the request to Cid! Then finally you guys show up and things go to pieces. Admit it; you hate this mission, you hate us and you hate our cause. You don't really care about Timber."

Squall walked over to her and looked Rinoa right in the eyes. "It is not a mercenary's job to become emotionally involved in mission. We stay detached because it allows us to keep our minds focused, ok? And yea, we work for the money but we do follow strict rules of conduct. We don't go around killing just anyone for gil. Every job is researched ahead of time to make sure we're not committing any kind of war crimes or aiding any terrorist organizations. And by the way, you can really pick out a good boyfriend."

Rinoa put her hands on her hips. "Bringing up Seifer again? That is none of your businesses. He's my ex and at least he was nice enough to get our request to Cid."

"How many times do I have to tell you, Seifer doesn't give a shit about your cause. Wake up! He proved it back there by storming in to kill Deling himself for himself. For his own personal glory!" Squall stepped back and realized this was pointless. Why did he care about getting this girl to understand? And why did it bother him that Seifer had been with her? She meant nothing to him, she was just a client. "You know what, I don't really want to discuss this with you. For Hyne's sake, I normally don't talk this much in a week."

"Ok fine, but you still didn't answer the real question? Do you care about our cause? Do you care that Timber is occupied by Galbadia?"

"Look, I don't agree with this occupation anymore than you."

"That's not a real answer. You're just giving me some neutral response. The night we danced together, you looked at me in a way that was so deep. Nobody's ever looked at me like that. Then you rush out at the weapons pick up and kill a bunch of Badian soldiers who walked in my direction. Does the man I hired to fight for us really care about us…about me?"

Squall's mind was racing. He didn't know how to answer because he honestly didn't know anymore. Normally he would just tell a girl right to her face that he didn't like to get attached and didn't need another person in his life. He liked the safety and security of solitude. It was too hazardous to let someone in. Dozens of thoughts and feelings that Squall hadn't felt in years started to surface little by little. But Squall would not admit it that easily. He made his mind push everything back in; he wasn't coming out of his shell tonight.

"I…think we should get some sleep. You have to decide if the three of you are going to stay with us or go off on your own."

With out another word, Squall turned and marched back inside as fast as he could. He slid the door open and passed Rebecca on his way back into the family room. She watched him go by then saw Rinoa come in and slowly slide the door shut before locking it. She could see the frustration and the anger in Rinoa's eyes. It was obvious to her that things hadn't gone well out there.

"Be patient dear. Some people just need more time to open up and realize what they have."

Rinoa's eye widened. "What? I don't...oh no, you don't think that I like him do you? He is the farthest thing from my type."

Rebecca grinned and nodded sarcastically. "Right baby girl. Whatever you say." Then she moved to the family room to address everyone. "Ok everyone; this is how we'll work it. All the girls can sleep upstairs. You can split it up between Donna and Paul's rooms. Paul, you and the rest of the guys can crash here in the family room."

Quistis stood up. "Thank you ma'am. Squall, do you think that someone should keep watch just in case?"

"Zell and I will take the watch. I'll take first half then wake Zell up for the second."

Everyone agreed then split up. Rebecca and Norman headed upstairs to turn in for the night. The girls got their stuff together and followed Donna up. Rinoa was the last in line up the stairs. Right before she disappeared out of sight, she looked over to Squall, not expecting to get anything out of him. But she found him looking right back at her. And this time, he didn't look away. Rinoa didn't want to read into it too much and take it as a sign of some sort, so she just nodded slightly then continued upstairs.

Squall walked over to the front window in the family room and sat down. He had a lot to think about and plenty of time to do so.

* * *

The next morning everyone awoke a little after 11am. After a quick breakfast everybody moved into the family room to decide the next move. Rinoa spoke first.

"Zone and I talked it over this morning and came to our decision. We will help you get out of the country if you agree to one condition."

"What is it?" Squall asked bluntly.

Rinoa stood up. "It's too dangerous for you guys to stay in Wolfsburg. Actually, it's too dangerous for you guys to stay in Timber altogether." Rinoa paused a moment to let that thought sink in everyone's mind.

Squall's right eyebrow shot up. He wondered what they were getting at. "I agree. Now what's the deal?"

Rinoa turned to Zone and nodded. Zone got up and gently rubbed her shoulder. "We want Rinoa to go with you. They didn't get your faces on camera but they have all of your descriptions, including Rin's. So it's too dangerous for her to stay as well."

Quistis leaned forward. "So what exactly do we do with her after we all get out of the country? What is our ultimate objective with her and were do we stand with Garden's current contract with you?"

Zone continued. "Our contract with Garden is still on. Your primary objective was to protect the two ranking members of the Forest Owls. Dylan is gone but Rinoa still needs to be protected. And you are still obligated to work for us until Timber is strong enough to declare its independence or at least go to the GCN for aid. So here's the deal. Rinoa stays with your group and under your protection until Timber is free or calls for aid. Those are our terms. Or we can split up and go our separate ways and you can figure out how to get out of Timber alive on your own."

Squall found everyone in the room looking at him for the decision. He was in charge and knew they would go with whatever choice he made. Squall figured they probably wouldn't make it with out the Owl's help. But babysitting Rinoa for what could be months or even years didn't sound like a picnic either, especially since he and Rinoa had substantial tensions between them now.

Watts walked over to Squall and looked at him. Normally timid and unsure, he now looked both determined and worried at the same time. "What's it gonna be Leonhart? Are we a team still?"

"If we take her with us, what will you two do?"

"They aren't looking for us. Me and Zone will link up with another resistance group called Forest Fox. They'll be happy to have us."

"Rebecca and I know them. They're good people." Norman added.

"Ok then, you got a deal. Now, how did you plan on getting us out of here?"

Watts crossed his arms. "All the civilian trains and aircraft coming and going in Wolfsburg have been stopped because of the attacks. But, I called a few contacts this morning and found out the rail lines outside the city are still running. The closest one is in the town of Mannhiem. It's only fifteen minutes away from here and it runs to Galbadia. You can get off at a station called East Academy."

Quistis turned to Squall. "Squall, remember Article Eight of Garden Code. In the event that SeeDs cannot get back to their assigned Garden they are to report to the nearest Garden. We can't get back to Balamb..."

"Galbadia Garden is the closest so that is our destination anyway. It works perfectly."

Zell stood up. "Dude, isn't going into Galbadia a really bad idea for us right now even if it's the closest Garden? Besides, we have to get back to Balamb to warn them. It's my fault they know we're SeeDs. If anything happens to Garden it will be my fault." He sat back down and dropped his face into his hands.

"Zell, don't blame yourself." Selphie began. "I'm sure Garden will be fine. They don't know which Garden it is. And we do have to get out of here first."

Quistis walked over to Zell and knelt down to rub his shoulder. "Besides, Galbadia is the last place they'd think to look for us."

"Where do we go from East Academy?" Squall asked.

"You'll have to walk from that point on. Galbadia is crawling with military patrols and road stops. But there's a large area of woods west of the station. There's a path that will lead you to Galbadia Garden. Get on it and stay on it until you clear the woods."

"We know it sounds sketchy but its the best we got." Zone added.

"Ok then, everybody get your things, we are going now." Squall ordered.

Ten minutes later everyone had gotten their things together and and loaded up the van. Zone and Watts sat up front while everyone once again crammed into the back of the small van, staying out of sight. Squall and Rinoa were the last two still outside. Rinoa walked Angelo up to Donna while Squall stood aside, letting her say her goodbyes.

"Ok Angelo, mama's gotta go on a trip but I'll be back. You be good and listen to Paul and Donna." She knelt down and hugged the dog then kissed her hand and put it on Angelo's nose. Angelo responded by barking twice and running a full circle around Rinoa before walking over to Donna. Rinoa stood and gave all the Arleigh's hugs.

"I'll watch over him Rin, I promise." Donna said.

Paul walked over to Angelo and rubbed his head. "I can take him for walks. We have a huge park down the street. He'll have the time of his life."

"Thanks you two, I really appreciate it."

Rebecca wiped a tear from her eye. "Bye baby girl. Take care of yourself and don't get hurt ok?"

Rinoa started to tear up again. "I'll be careful and I promise to come back." She walked over to Rebecca and hugged her again. Then she gave Norman another hug during which, he whispered something into her ear.

"Don't give up on him yet sweety. I can tell he has a good heart, he just doesn't know it yet."

Rinoa chuckled as they both looked over at Squall who was standing there with his typical stoic demeanor. Rinoa smiled and shook her nodded. "Ok."

She stepped back from the family and walked over to the van, waving one last time before she got in.

Squall turned to the family and quietly nodded in respect then got into the van. As the van took off down the street Norman put an arm around Rebecca and gave her a squeeze.

Rebecca let out a low sigh. "Oh Hyne, Norm, they're just kids, teenagers. And they have to deal with situations like this already."

"I know but the SeeDs are highly trained. They are far more mature then the average high school kid."

Rebecca turned and looked Norm in the eyes. "Do you think Rin will be ok?"

"He won't let anything happen to her."

The confidence showing in her husband's eyes and in his voice made her feel better. "I believe that too dear. Now, lets go inside and start to get lunch ready. Zone and Watts will be back in a little bit and you know those two, they can eat."

* * *

Twenty minutes later the van pulled into the parking lot of the Mannheim Train Station. Everyone quickly got out and huddled up.

Zone pointed to a ticket booth over to the right. "Watts called in ahead of time and ordered the tickets. Their under the name Squall."

Watt's looked over to Rinoa. "Well I guess this is it."

"Come here you two." Rinoa said.

Watts and Zone walked over to her and gave Rinoa a tight squeeze. They had been through so much together and Rinoa considered them her brothers.

"You guys have to promise me something. No matter what, you two have to survive. We are going to liberate Timber together, to honor the memory of all the Forest Owls."

Zone gave Rinoa another hug then kissed her on the forehead. "Be careful Rinoa, come back to us."

"I will." She could feel more tears about to surface but forced them back. From here on things were going to get serious and dangerous real fast and she needed to be focused. Rinoa picked up her bag and walked over to the SeeDs. She realized her life was now completely in the hands of the mercenary soldiers they had hired. There would be no support from resistance factions anymore. She only hoped that the SeeDs would live up to their promise to keep her safe.

As they started to make their way over to the ticket booth, Zone grabbed Squall's hand. "Don't fuck this up Squall. You keep her alive and well no matter what the cost."

The two stared at each other for another moment before Zone slowly let go of Squall's hand. With out saying anything else, Zone walked over to the van and hopped in then took off.

Squall realized that although they may have been just amateurs, the Owls had been a family, working together for a cause they all believed in. He understood Zone's warning; Zone considered Rinoa a sister and had just handed over her life to Squall for safe keeping. Squall had a sister too once, a long time ago. But he couldn't remember her so well anymore, as a matter of fact he couldn't remember most of his childhood anymore. However, he did remember one thing. That "sis" had left him, for some reason she left one day and never came back. It was an event that would ultimately shape Squall into the person he was today.

Not wanting to remember that single memory anymore, he forced it back inside, just like he'd done many times before. Right now the only thought on his mind was getting to Galbadia Garden.

* * *

**NOTES**

Well, another chapter. This one took me longer to finish then I had expected but I ended up changing it twice. I wanted a complete meltdown to take place between Rinoa and Squall as well as the SeeDs and the Owls. Rinoa and Squall still have plenty of tension between them but there is an upcoming event that will change all of that.


	16. Behind Enemy Lines

**Chapter 16**

**Behind Enemy Lines**

Tuesday, May 10th, 2217NE

2:22pm

The train ride had been surprisingly peaceful so far. Squall had been convinced that they would have run into some sort of Galbadian presence, either patrolling the train or running a check point by the entrance to the train to verify ID's. But the only military presence he saw had been two soldiers patrolling the general area of the station itself. As a matter of fact, the only excitement he'd seen was Selphie going into one of her joy-based conniptions over the fact that they got to ride a train. Which brought Squall to where he stood now. Watts and Zone had some how managed to not only get them tickets, but tickets for their own private cabin. Squall had opted to stand outside of it in the connecting hallway, just blankly staring out the window. It would have been a bit crowded for everyone to sit in the one cabin and he certainly didn't want to be crammed in a room with Rinoa right now. The tension between them was still too high and he needed his space to be with his own thoughts. To the left of him, a little further down was Selphie, hopping up and down on both feet in a fit of excitement. Shaking his head, he looked back out the window, content on just watching the landscape go by.

Inside the booth, Rinoa sat opposite Quistis and Zell. She noticed Zell still looked upset from having mentioned Garden to Deling. She understood how he felt. Zell cared about Garden the same way she cared about Timber and didn't want to see anything happen to it. Quistis looked to be deep in thought. Rinoa and Zell had caught her up on all details of what had happened up until the point they'd met. Thinking that Quistis would be pretty quiet for the rest of the trip, Rinoa was about to say something to Zell to try to cheer him up.

"So you are the one he danced with that night?" Quistis suddenly asked.

Rinoa noticed Zell's eyes go wide suddenly. Something about the way Quistis had just asked that question didn't sit to well with Rinoa.

"I am. He's a good dancer, even though he tries to hide it."

Quistis crossed her arms. "I wouldn't know. I was one of his instructors for over a year."

"So you're saying you wanted to then?" Rinoa couldn't be sure but the tone of this woman sounded like jealousy and suspicion.

Quistis was quick to answer. "No, I'm just making an observation. Squall isn't the type to talk to people much less dance with them so I'm just wondering what it is about you that he found interesting?"

Rinoa bit her lower lip as she juggled that thought in her mind. _So he really doesn't open up to people but he opened up to me...slightly._

Rinoa didn't know if there had been something between Quistis and Squall at some point but she doubted it. Squall didn't seem like the type to sleep with his instructors or have lots of girlfriends and one night stands. But with tensions between her and Squall already skyrocketing she didn't need to have another person treating her in a sour manor. Thinking fast, she decided to change subject to Garden itself. After all, she really didn't know that much about it.

"So, um, tell me about Garden. You guys say you're really misunderstood so help me understand what Garden really is. I know there's three Gardens but what do they do and how do you get in?"

Zell looked at Quistis and then shrugged. Quistis cocked up one eyebrow then turned her focus on the window, making it very clear that she did not want to change the topic and definitely wasn't about to tell Rinoa about Garden.

However, Zell figured it wouldn't hurt to tell her a little about Garden at this point. Or maybe he just wanted to break the tension in the cabin.

"Well..." Zell began. "To start, each Garden is independent from the other Gardens and has a different primary function. The Gardens are recognized by the Global Confederacy of Nations as a small independent city-state that occupies a portion of the land from the host nation it sits on. Each Garden works out its own deal with its host nation. By law no Garden can except contracts or take action against its home nation that may be harmful or contradictory to that nation's interests or wellbeing. Balamb Garden has a close relationship with the government of Balamb; acting as a personal body guard for Balamb by supplementing Balamb's own military as well as training its soldiers. In return, Balamb gets to stay for free."

"Ok, so how does it all work with the other clients. I mean, I understand that Balamb itself is a client of sorts but how does it work with clients that aren't countries."

"Balamb Garden doesn't really employ third party military contractors or mercenaries as most people think." Zell said. "We aren't independent third party soldiers hired by Garden to work for clients. Everyone at our Garden is an employee of Balamb Garden. So a client, let's say the government of Winhill, will set up a contract with Garden who will then send it's employees, that being us, over to work for them for predetermined amount of time. Garden itself is the contracting entity, not us."

"So you graduate and then you're a SeeD?"

Zell nodded. "After the training, Cadets are considered full time SeeDs and are dispatched on missions all over the world. Most missions are normally short term, either weeks or a few months. Longer missions do occur but are thoroughly planned out ahead of time to determine the contracts details. Details like estimations on the mission's length of time, cost, and rotation of new SeeDs if necessary. SeeDs will work on rotating shifts consisting of tours of duty. This means they will work for a certain amount of time then have off for a certain amount of time. We can be deployed to work on mission for up to a year before our policies mandate that we be rotated back. We usually get several months of leave to visit family, rest and go through monthly training drills."

Rinoa laughed when she noticed Zell grinning over the knowledge he had. "Zell, are you having a good time with this?"

Zell turned a light shade of red. "Well yea, I mean, we don't ever really get a chance to tell anyone about ourselves. Most clients hire SeeDs to go and do the job then leave. They don't want to small talk with us or learn anything about us and I think thats why we're so misunderstood. Plus we're not telling you anything thats classified, this is all general knowledge."

Rinoa smiled. "I never knew anything about Garden. Thanks for telling me."

"No problem."

Rinoa sat for a few minutes thinking about the SeeDs and what she had said about them before. Were they the soulless, bloodthirsty killers that many people made them out to be? She was beginning to doubt the stereotypes about SeeDs that she listened to her whole life.

The door to the private room opened and in walked Squall. "We're just about there. The second this train stops, we are jumping off it and running right to the woods."

Everyone got their things gathered together and stood by one of the exits. Around them other people moved about, giving them good cover. As the train came to a stop, Squall surveyed the scene outside. East Academy was a small train station on the Galbadian/Timber boarder used primarily to get cargo in and out of Timber. The station was swarming with Galbadian soldiers who we're checking ID's. It would be no easy task to get a group their size off the train with out being noticed.

"New plan. We're going to the back of the train."

Everyone followed as Squall marched through car after car, using the crowd to blend in. When they got to the back of the last of car, Squall could see the woods off to his right.

"The woods are about a hundred yards away. When I open this door we all sprint for the tree line. Got it?"

The group nodded and everyone took one last deep breath. Squall opened the door and jumped off the back of the train then hit the ground running. Everyone ran as fast as they could; no one bothered to look back. Squall hit the tree line first and then stopped and waited for everyone else. The rest of the SeeDs were right behind him but Rinoa lagged behind. With out GF junctioning like the others, she couldn't keep up. Squall reached down into his bag and grabbed his rifle then ran back out to meet her half way. As she ran towards him he kept an eye on her six, making sure no soldiers saw her running and tried to get a shot off. When she caught up with him he turned and ran with her back towards the trees, disappearing into the thick woods. Once there, Squall had the group run another forty yards for better cover before stopping. He scanned the ground behind them to see if they attracted any attention but it looked like they had lucked out.

Rinoa bent over and rested her hands on the tops of her knees. Gasping for air, she turned to Squall. "How...how did you all run that far that fast and not be out of breath."

"It's the GF junctioning," he replied. "Ok everyone, weapons out. Lock and load. The path should be close but it looks like it could be a little while before we're out of the forest. These woods are probably crawling with monsters so conserve your ammunition, we don't have much left. I want us moving in five minutes so get ready."

Everyone got their remaining weapons out of their bags and armed themselves. Squall strapped on his gunblade and G34 side arm then slung the Galbadian rifle back over his shoulder. Selphie loaded the remaining ammo drum into her M249 and holstered her nunchaku on her belt. Zell holstered his pistol and a single remaining knife. Quistis loaded her Galbadian USP45 pistol and latched her whip onto her belt. She had two spare mags for the pistol.

With weapons loaded, Squall turned his attention to his surrounds to gain as much situational awareness as he could. These woods were deep, thick and intimidating. One could easily get lost in here and be walking aimlessly in circles for days without noticing it. The sounds of animals and monsters filled the air while huge, titan-like trees jutted up towards the sky. Squall noticed that the woods got darker the farther in he looked and guessed that a decent amount of the light never made it to the forest floor. Around them, long grasses, fallen logs, bushes and thick vines made seeing past thirty yards impossible and provided ample spaces for monsters to set ambushes or dens.

Rinoa loaded her pistol then attached her mini crossbow to her right forearm. She noticed the SeeDs checking their melee weapons and a question came to mind. "Are all SeeD SF junctioned?"

Squall looked back at Rinoa then scanned the immediate area again before answering. "Yea, all SeeD Special Forces have been junctioned on a military grade level."

"So you guys are like super human I guess."

Selphie giggled slightly. "Not really Rin. Everyone reacts to the junctioning differently. Most people with military junctioning are twice as strong as normal healthy adult."

"So what does that really mean though?"

"That means that we can run, jump, lift and hit with approximately two times the force of anyone else. And cast magic easier and more frequently. And our bodies become tougher and more resistant to injury. Every now and then you get a SeeD who becomes two and a half or three times stronger but this is rare."

Rinoa silently nodded and Selphie moved forward with the others. Squall walked over to Rinoa and pointed to her side arm. She handed it over to him and he looked it over real quick, checking to see that it was working and loaded then gave it back to her. "It's good to go, Rinoa."

Rinoa looked into Squall's sky blue eyes and felt her knees start to go weak and her heart beat speed up. They both already knew that her handgun worked fine. She took it as a sort of indirect, wordless apology from him, as if to say they should try to start over.

"Thanks."

"The real reason we have junctioning is to aid in magic use and melee attacks or hand to hand combat," Squall said. "The average person has no training and no ability to use magic and even those who do normally take five to eight seconds to cast a spell. In combat waiting that amount of time can get you killed. But with the junctioning it only takes us about one or two seconds to cast a spell. That's another reason why SeeD SF get the injections. We travel in smaller groups than regular soldiers and often are completely on our own. So we have our physical and magical abilities enhanced and use them in conjunction with our other weapons. It makes us better close quarter fighters."

"Sounds like a dream come true for soldiers."

"It has it's price." Squall replied. "The reason we can run faster and jump higher is because the GF essence running though our veins aids our bodies to accomplish advanced physical tasks. But we can still overdo it and break bones or tear ligaments or tendons. Plus, casting stronger or quicker spells may help in battle but it tires the body faster. SeeDs have been known to pass out or even drop dead from over casting spells after having been junctioned."

"Only a Sorceress can cast spells faster, stronger and more frequently than us. A Sorceress is far more advanced then any SeeD." Selphie added.

"I see."

"Ok, enough about SeeD, discussion time is over. I want to make good time so we'll keep moving at a quick marching pace," Squall ordered. The group formed a V shape with Squall and Quistis upfront, Zell and Selphie on the sides and Rinoa in the middle.

The first hour had passed by with out anyone saying anything. But Zell couldn't get Garden off his mind. He wouldn't be able to live with himself if anything were to happen to it. He quickened his pace up to where Squall was so that he could walk and talk.

"Squall."

"What?"

"Do you think that Garden will be attacked by Galbadia."

"I don't know."

"But even if they did, the Badians wouldn't win right?"

"I don't know Zell. Depends on how large the attacking force is, how quickly our people could assemble and how fast the Balamb military could respond."

"Hyne, if anything happens to Garden. It will be my fault. I'm the one who said we we're from Garden."

Squall didn't respond because Zell was right basically. Lying to him and saying it would all be ok wouldn't help the situation.

Rinoa had waited for Squall to say something back to Zell to make him feel better but nothing came. Squall just gazed forward blankly, watching for threats. Rinoa marched up to Squall and semi-whispered, "Oh, you're some leader alright. How can you be so callous towards your teammates? He's looking to you to lift his morale."

Squall rolled his eyes and was about respond with some curt remark when something caught his eye. He immediately stopped and held up his fist, signaling everyone to stop. Then he pointed to the ground and everyone got down on one knee. Selphie stayed back while Quistis moved over to Squall's position.

"Movement up ahead," Squall whispered.

"Badians," Quistis asked quietly.

"No," Squall replied. "I think we just walked into a monster nest."

The group held their position, listening to the sounds or rustling bushes and light hiss noises. Then Squall spotted one. Thirty yards off, directly in front of them, a single Grat poked it's plant-like head out from behind a tree. It stood there like a statue, which Squall found suspicious.

_ Why is it just standing there? Why is there just one? Grats always hunt in packs...they use ambush techniques. Oh God! _The second he realized it, it was already too late. "It's a pack, check our flanks!"

Squall barely got the sentence out before the bushes all around them were torn to the ground as Grats charged at the group from all sides. A large Grat charged Squall, determined to make a meal out of him. Squall swung around to point his rifle but the monster was too fast. It used one of it's four long tentacles to slap him across the front, sending his G36 flying off behind him. Squall barely managed to role off to the left as the monster brought it's other tentacles down on the spot he had just occupied. Thinking fast he casted a shift spell to launch his opponent back then drew his gunblade. The monster was immediately back up on its legs and charged once again. Squall charged forward and ran his blade straight through the belly of the monster then cut to the right, ripping the Grat open. Digestive juices spilled to the ground as it fell dead.

"Watch the arms, they're barbed on the ends!"

Selphie and Zell grabbed Rinoa and got her behind them as three Grats charged them. The center one opened it's trap-like mouth and spit a noxious green ball of goo at the group. Zell launched a fireball that engulfed it in mid air, vaporing it.

"Look out when it spits!" Quistis yelled. "It's a nerve agent, if it hits you it could paralyze you for hours!"

Selphie and Zell took aim and opened fire. The gun fire ripped through the bodies of the monsters, cutting them to pieces. But more charged out of the thick vegetation and both SeeDs emptied their weapons into the advancing enemy.

"I'm out!" Zell announced.

"Me too!" Selphie said. She tossed the M249 and drew out her nunchaku.

Quistis shot two Grats dead and turned to kill the other one but it was faster to the punch. Two of it's tentacles slapped the gun out of her hand while the other two punched her in the face. She fell to her knees then rolled immediately and scrambled for her side arm. She managed to reach it and pointed and fired a single shot that hit the Grat in the stomach. This seemed to do little damage and enraged the monster. It again one of it's long arms to slap her across the shoulder causing her to drop the gun. Then it rushed in with the other three arms and wrapped her up around the waist, hoisting her up into the air. As it started to squeeze tighter and tighter, Quistis cringed from the pain, causing her to lose her focus. This stopped her from using any magic spells. The pressure became even greater and she could feel her body starting to go numb. Reaching behind her, she unlatched her whip and used her remaining strength to launch one attack. The whip sliced the Grat across the arms, severing them from the body.

Quistis fell to the ground with a thud and started pull off the Grat's arms. The Grat flailed in pain and anger for a moment then began to move on her position again. Just as it loomed over her again, a yellow blur flew into Quistis' field of view, sending the monster to the ground again. Quistis watched Selphie land on the ground with nunchuck in hand. She had a cut on her forehead and a deeper gash on her arm that was bleeding heavily. Not waisting any time she charged at the Grat, nunchuck raised. The Grat opened it's mouth and hurled a sphere of poison at Selphie but she was quicker. She jumped into the air and struck the monster sending it to the ground. Selphie wasn't about to let this thing get back up. She focused her energy and created a larger fireball then hurled it at the Grat. It made contact with the monster, completely incinerating the creature. The strain of using such a powerful spell dropped Selphie to her knees, panting and breathing heavily.

"Plant monsters are very weak against fire magic," Quistis stated.

"Yea, your welcome," Selphie replied in between heavy breaths.

Rinoa had managed up to this point to stay in the middle of the four SeeDs trying her best to give support fire to her comrades. She shot one Grat that Zell was fighting with her mini crossbow then killed one of another two Grats that had jumped Squall. As she reached to her belt to slap her last remaining magazine into her pistol, she got nailed in the back by a single Grat. She hit the ground and rolled several times, coming to a stop on her back. The Grat was already with in feet of her when she regained her senses. On reflex she pointed her arm out and launched her loaded crossbow bolt hitting the monster on it's top right mouth leaf. This seemed only to anger the monster; it lifted all four arms preparing to smash Rinoa to bits. But suddenly there was a horizontal flash of silver across the Grats abdomen that stopped the creature dead in it's tracks. Then, and slowly at first, the Grat fell to the ground in two pieces. Behind it stood Squall, who now sported a long bloody slash across the front of his shirt.

There was no hesitation in his movement as he ran over to Rinoa and picked her up off the ground and got her on her feet. Off in the distance the hissing sounds of more Grats could be heard.

"Everyone up now! There's be more coming!"

Zell rushed over to Selphie and helped her to her feet then gave Quistis a hand. The group ran as fast as they could and didn't stop until they could no longer hear any sound. Trying to rest so that they could get their wind back, the group huddled up.

"I think we lost them," Rinoa said.

"Yea...totally," Zell added between breaths.

"It's weird though, Grats usually have large territories. We only ran about three quarters of a mile," Squall stated.

"I wonder what would make them stop chasing us?" Selphie asked

Quistis was going to enlighten the group with an educated guess but never got the chance. The answer flung her twenty feet into a grouping of bushes. Everyone jumped and swung around as a large bear-like monster with four giant bladed arms stood where Quistis had stood a moment before. It easily stood ten feet tall and had to have weighed 800 pounds.

"Holy shit...it's a Death Claw," Zell said weakly.

With out another thought Squall pulled his pistol and opened fire, decking the monster with slug after slug. Selphie and Rinoa ran over to Quistis and helped her up while Zell ran to the Death Claw's right side and launched several lightning attacks. The 9mm hollowpoint slugs from Squall's G34 hit the monster in the abdomen but weren't causing much damage to the beast.

The second Squall's magazine was empty, it lunged at Squall, slashing him across the leg. Squall dropped to knee from the pain but tried to reach Revolver. But the Death Claw moved in for another attack, back handing Squall to the ground. The monster moved in for the kill but was stung from behind by another bolt of lightning from Zell. It swung around and started moving his way causing Zell to take a few steps back. He focused and felt another ball of lightning form in his hand then launched it. But the Death Claw was ready for it and used shell to block the magic attack them used its other arms to cast it's own lightning attack. The bolt hit Zell square in the chest and he yelled out in agony as the attack knocked him to the ground.

Suddenly the sounds of war cries echoed as Selphie and Quistis charged the beast. Quistis jumped into the air and slashed the the creature across the chest but was hit by the dull side of the the monster's arm, sending her crashing to the ground. Selphie used her enhanced strength to launch herself up and throw a nasty jump kick that hit the Death Claw center mass. It stumbled back a step or two but then came forward again to attack Selphie. It raised one of it's arms and swung at her, intent on cutting Selphie in half. Selphie put both pieces of the nunchuck together and held it up to block the attack. But the Death Claw's strike was too powerful. It broke the nunchuck sticks in two and cut Selphie across the arm. The force of the blow spun her around until she collapsed.

Squall had managed to get to his feet one more time and leaped into the air, bringing his blade down on the monster. But the beast was just as fast and blocked Squall's attack with one of it's bladed claw arms. The two stood at a standoff, both pushing at each other. The Death Claw was much stronger and started to easily push Squall back. But this had been what Squall had wanted. He cracked a slight grin then reached down on pulled the trigger of Revolver. The energy flash shattered the Death Claw's talon, causing the monster to stumble, roaring in pain. But as Squall rushed in to stab the monster through the heart, it suddenly focused and stepped forward to head butt Squall. The strike connected and flattened Squall out on the ground. The shock of the hit left Squall woozy and flung his gunblade way out of reach. None of the other SeeDs showed signs of getting up, they could only watch in horror as the Death Claw closed in on Squall, salivating heavily at the though of it's next meal.

Quistis had told Rinoa to stay back and she had up until this point. But she quickly loaded her last bolt into her mini crossbow and took aim on the creatures skull.

_ Make this one good princess._

She aimed for another half a second and fired. The bolt rocketed out and struck the monster in the neck, going right out through the other side. The monster was bleeding profusely, but it hadn't gone down. It now turned it's attention to Rinoa, who had no pistol and no bolts left. She was defenseless. The other SeeDs tried to get up or crawl in her direction, yelling at the beast to get it's attention but it only saw Rinoa. She tried running to the right but it lunged out and slashed her across the arm, sending her to the ground. She yelped as she hit the ground, blood streaming down her arm.

And then Squall was on his feet again, rushing the monster. No weapon like last time, only will power.

_Got to get in between her and it. _

He jumped up and wrapped his arms around the beast's large neck, trying to strangle it. But the Death Claw simply shook him off. He hit the ground in front of it, getting between the beast and Rinoa. But the Death Claw had taken just about enough. It raised it's colossal right leg and brought it down on top of Squall. Squall pushed back as hard as he could but it was no use. The Death Claw was too strong. He was a dead man.

Rinoa watched in horror. Blood oozed down her arm. She saw the other SeeDs trying move but only able to watch the gruesome scene. Then she looked back to Squall and everything suddenly started to slow down. In what seemed like one second she thought back to the SeeD Ball where they danced, then to her room on the train where Squall gazed at her and then to the weapons pick up where he had saved her the first time.

_ Squall is going to die right in front of me._

And that's when it happened. A rage sparked inside Rinoa Heartilly. A sudden tingle; a prickly pins and needles feeling started to swell all over her body. She didn't know what was happening but didn't care. She just went with it. She took one step forward and raised her arm, pointing her open hand at the Death Claw. Her body seemed to do it on its own. The monster didn't seem to care, it was too focused on driving Squall into the ground.

"Get off of him right...NOW!"

There was a brilliant eruption of light and energy that exploded forth from Rinoa's out stretched hand. It projected across the forest, hit the Death Claw square in the chest. But it didn't stop there. The beam of concentrated light passed through the beast and kept going for miles through the woods.

After another three seconds, the beam died down then simply vanished, as if it had never existed. Squall had saw the beam and had closed his eyes. But then the pressure on his body had lightened up. He managed to wiggle free from under the monster's foot and got picked himself up. The other SeeDs were just now managing to get up. All four SeeDs walked over to the Death Claw which now stood still before them.

All they could do was gawk at the scene. In front of them stood a now stone dead Death Claw with a car tire-sized hole burned right through the center of it. A slight breeze picked up suddenly causing the monster to tip backwards and fall to the earth. No one could say anything, they just watched it fall to the ground. Behind it was a path of destruction cut surgically into the woods that spanned as far as their eyes could see. Then they turned and saw a petite Rinoa Heartilly standing there with both hands over her mouth.

Another moment of extremely awkward silence went by before Rinoa broke it.

"Oh my God, was that me?"

Squall couldn't think of anything to say. As a matter of fact, he couldn't think period. Only jumbled thoughts came to mind.

_Rinoa did that. Rinoa, who can't use magic, who doesn't have any training, who plans strategies on a chalkboard ten minutes before executing them, who couldn't even keep her room on her train clean._

"That...was...awesome."

Everyone, including Rinoa, turned and just looked at Zell blankly. He put his hands up defensively. "Well...it was," he stated point blank.

Selphie walked over to Rinoa and took her hand. "You did that? How?"

"I don't know."

"I thought you had almost no magic training." Squall inquired.

"I don't, I mean I'm still practicing basic cure spells."

Quistis walked over to her. "Cure spells!? Rinoa, that was a light beam attack. A very powerful Forbidden class magic spell. Not one of us can cast that spell. Actually, there aren't too many people on this planet that can."

Rinoa didn't know what to say. "I just remember getting mad and then it happened."

However she had done it, she'd saved all their lives.

Squall checked the wound on his chest. It wasn't too deep. Then he dusted his pants off and looked over at the others. "Look, lets patch ourselves up, then we'd best get moving again. We can figure it out when we get to Garden but we've got to keep..."

Squall trailed off as a familiar ringing began in his ears, getting louder by the second. His eyes slammed shut as the ring became more intense, forcing him to drop his face into his hand.

_Shit, not again._

Rinoa watched Squall stagger suddenly then drop to the ground unconscious. Before she could say anything else, Quistis and Selphie both slumped over and crumpled to the ground. She looked to Zell, horrified.

"What's going on!?"

"I think they went into the dreamworld."

"The what?"

"Let's get them off the road. I see a small cave twenty yards ahead. Then I'll explain it to ya."

* * *

**NOTES**

I used this chapter to explain a little more about about Garden and how it all works. I hope you liked the explanation because I did spend a decent amount of time trying to think of how something as complex as a Garden would work in a practical sense. I'm writing the state of this world in a fashion that is similar/comparable to how our own world was back in the 1960's -1980's era during the Cold War years. Big rivalries between countries, civil wars, occupations; all types of unrest that would have to exist for there to be a need for a large entity such as Garden to exist and thrive in.

So Rinoa shows her first glimpse of power because she thought Squall was going to die. The first solid evidence that she may have pretty strong feelings for him. I know it may not make sense as to why she would be so powerful since she isn't a full blown Sorceress yet but you'll have to trust me on this one. The way I'm writing up how the concept of a Sorceress works is slightly different then the game itself but don't worry too much. I got some good material to cover and explain it. You'll just have to keep reading.


	17. Dream: Crystal Reconnaissance

**Chapter 17**

**Dream: Crystal Reconnaissance**

The Past

They were at war with Esthar, the most powerful nation on the planet, and it had been an uphill battle from the start. After Timber had finally been conquered, Laguna, Ward and Kiros had been transferred with thousands of other soldiers to the Centran Continent. The northern group of islands were the Moomba Territories, home to the Moombas, a cat-like race of bipedal, tribal beings that were far less technologically advanced than the rest of the planet. But neither Esthar nor Galbadia were interested in the northern islands. They were nothing more than swamps and jungles.

What the two super powers were interested in was Zarathoss, the large southern island mass of the Centran Continent. It had far more remaining Centran ruins in the middle of the territory that some researchers believe might have been the location of Bryn Marh; the mythical capital city of the ancient Centran civilization. The island was mostly mountains and flat grasslands but did have one or two large forest areas. It was uninhabited and unclaimed by any nation which was an obvious stage for war to break out. It was only a matter of time before the two most powerful nations on the planet fought to claim the land and it's resources. Initially, Galbadia had lost several key battles allowing Esthar to easily occupy three quarters of Zarathoss. It had been only three weeks ago that Galbadia had won a small victory allowing them to gain a foothold. This kept the Estharians from claiming the last quarter of the island to the west.

On this particular mission, a large Galbadian reconnaissance team had advanced into Estharian grounds then broken off into smaller, three man fire teams to scout and patrol a larger area. About a hour after breaking up into groups, Laguna's team had heard distant gunfire from the west and north and then nothing. Then they had found a small, narrow foot trail that had lead them to the valley below.

"Kiros, you sure this is the place?" Ward was starting to grow impatient. Normally when Laguna got them lost, he still had some general knowledge of where they were. But this time was different because Kiros had helped Laguna and they had still ended up in this spot.

Kiros walked up to Ward and gave him a slap on the back. "I'm positive. I checked the map and this is where we are supposed to be. The coordinates are right. But that thing is not supposed to be right there. Recon from two days ago showed this area as an empty valley."

"That can't be right! That thing couldn't of just appeared. Let me see that map."

As they both continued to argue, Laguna stood in front of them mesmerized, still gazing out at the large alien structure that lied in the valley ahead of them. He seemed not to be listening to their conversation, intently staring at the object that lie before them. It appeared to be a gigantic, pale, green crystal. It looked like the Estharians were attempting to encase it by building a large metal exoskeleton around it.

"I just don't want to be patrolling the wrong place, like the patrol that went bad last week. I mean we haven't heard anything over the radio for two hours now. Maybe we've been cut off. We might be the only Badian soldiers left out here. We should go back."

It was at this point that Laguna snapped out of it and turned to his comrades. "Ah...sorry guys but I don't think this is our assigned patrol area."

Ward shook his head in a frustrated manor but Kiros waved it off. "No, this is it because I double checked the coordinates and the grid. Let's go sergeant. We have to find out what that thing is and report back to command."

"I don't know Kiros, I got a bad feeling about this. Plus, that weird feeling in my head is back. The one we all felt back in Timber. It feels like there is someone else inside my head with me."

"Yea, I just got that too." Ward said.

"It's like a real light buzzing sensation." Kiros added.

"You know what the old folks say, expect the unfamiliar," Laguna confidently proclaimed.

Kiros and Ward started laughing and Laguna threw his arms up in confusion.

"Actually, it's expect the unexpected, not the unfamiliar." Kiros said.

"At least you got the 'un' part right. Thats better than you usually do."

"Ah shut up the two of ya. Make sure your gear is ready. I need my two best infantry chargers ready to go."

"What about our heads?" Ward asked.

"Nothing we can do about the feeling in our minds right now. But maybe we should keep that to ourselves for the time being."

Kiros nodded. "I agree, we should focus in on the recon of this...thing."

"Ok then guys, we're going in. Keep your eyes sharp and look out for the Estharian patrols. We don't want the _Tars_ sneaking up on us. There's a hill over here that we can use as a path leading into the valley."

They made their way down the hill and into the valley with out seeing any Estharian presence. At the bottom was about another fifty yards of thick wooded area and then a set of metallic stairs leading up to a platform. They slowly climbed the stairs, expecting an ambush at any moment. But the attack never came and they now stood on a large platform that lead into the mysterious structure. They observed the area immediately in front of the entrance. To their left was a generator with two huge cables leading into the structure. Two spot lights stood a couple feet ahead of them. But there were no soldiers, no attack robots or drones and no alarms or cameras. There wasn't even any sound say for the hum of the generator running.

Kiros looked around cautiously, wandering why this thing was. "Well this platform and the generator are definitely Estharian but I have no idea what they are attached to."

"It seems like the generator is supplying power to...it." Laguna added.

"It's gotta Centran?" Kiros offered.

"Yea but what the hell is it? A weapon?"

Kiros shrugged. "Who knows. But that thing is definitely not Tar technology."

Ward swung his spear over his shoulder. "And where the hell is everyone? I mean this place is looks abandoned."

"They could be out fighting the rest of our platoon."

"Then we'd best get in there and take a quick look around before they all get back. Let's go." Laguna raised his machine gun and started forward. "Ok guys, we're silent from here; hand signals only. Don't want to run into any-"

"Galbadians!"

All three Galbadians turned and saw four Estharian soldiers come running out of the structure.

"Tar soldiers!"

"I knew this was too easy!" Ward yelled.

"Still wearing those flashy uniforms, eh?"

Estharian soldier wore a form of body armor that was a full body suit. Made of up of both steel and ceramic plates, they were completely encased. The plating on their shoulders, chest, knees and elbows was a dark blue and thicker than the light armor covering the rest of the body, allowing better movement. The rest of the armor was a combination yellow and silver. Up top was an advanced helmet covering their whole heads with large, red bug-eye lenses that provided them with thermal imaging and a zoom capability as well as normal sight.

Three of the soldiers carried a battle ax that had a shotgun incorporated into is for close combat. The ax men were the equivalent of the Galbadian charger unit. The fourth man carried a light machine gun.

"Kill them!" the machine gunner ordered.

"Ward, Kiros, take the melee soldiers!"

Ward and Kiros charged at the three soldiers who charged back at them. A loud clanging sound echoed as they slammed their weapons against each other. Meanwhile Laguna was trading bursts of fire with the Estharian gunner. Neither one could shoot into the group for fear of hitting their own soldiers.

Ward managed to get the drop on one of the soldiers and ducked under the swing of the ax then swung his spear as hard as he could like up baseball bat. The spear made contact with the enemy soldier and flung him clear off the catwalk. He hit the ground with a bounce and didn't get back up. Ward was taken back by his strength. He seemed to grow super strong every time that weird head feeling came back.

Kiros used his right katal to parry his opponent's attack then brought the other up and ran it right through the soldier's armored helmet. The other soldier pointed the shotgun part of his ax at Kiros and pulled the trigger but Kiros had already reacted. He jumped and flipped clear over the soldier then swung both blades cutting the enemy's head clear off.

Laguna was quicker and sharper too and managed to see the opponent coming up from behind cover with lightning fast reflexes. He pointed his weapon and fired one round which smacked the enemy soldier right between the eyes, killing him instantly.

As quickly as it started, it was over. They checked each other for wounds and found none.

"It's like our ability to fight increases whenever we get that weird feeling in our heads." Kiros commented.

"It's like we're invincible guys!" Laguna exclaimed with a grin.

Before Ward could add to the conversation, all three got decked by enemy machine gun fire. Laguna took three rounds to the chest, luckily hitting him in the heavy armor that covered his chest and shoulders. Ward took one in the right arm and Kiros took one on the armored part of his hip. All three soldiers hit the cat walk at the same time and quickly crawled into the entrance to the crystal structure.

"Ok, so we're not invincible." Laguna retorted through the pain of the blunt trauma.

"I thought this was going to be an easy patrol." Ward grumbled.

"Why does this always happen to us?" Kiros asked.

Laguna didn't bother to answer but peaked out the entrance to see the enemy numbers. Between forty and fifty Estharian soldiers were making their way to the platform. Laguna took another deep breath and flung around then opened fire, spraying the enemy position with machine gun fire. Several soldiers went down but most ducked for cover then returned fire.

Laguna yanked his only grenade off his belt and pulled the pin then lobbed it over to the Estharian position. It hit the ground and blew a second later, killing several Esthar warriors and flinging a couple others back.

"We have to go now!"

They took off into the rock structure, Laguna up front, Kiros limping behind him with Ward bringing up the rear while holding his bleeding arm. They ran about twenty yards before coming to a ladder that went down. Not hesitating, they climbed down then began to sprint again. They could hear voices and shouting behind them. They were in a sort of circular tunnel with a flat pathway scraped out at the bottom. The tunnel was brighter than they expected and it seemed to glow in a greenish light.

They ran another 100 yards then reached a bend in the path that curved right, then left then seemed to slope up. The crystal had turned from a green to a yellow and then to a reddish color. At the top of the path was a soldier standing guard by another catwalk which seemed to lead outside. He was in armored differently from the normal soldiers. His body suit armor was all blue but colored dark gray over the shoulders and chest. He had his battle ax slung over his back and held an assault rifle.

The second they came into view the soldier opened fire. Laguna, Ward and Kiros hit the ground and rolled back down the hill several yards before getting back to their feet.

"It's a cyborg soldier, much stronger than the normal Tar."

"We're going to have to rush him, it won't take long for the others to catch up with us."

The cyborg slowly walked towards the slope ready to strike. Laguna gave the signal and they all rushed up and over the hill at the cyborg. Laguna held the trigger down but the cyborg was faster on the trigger. Rounds from it's machine gun hit Laguna's machine gun destroying it while another bullet cut through his leg sending him to the ground.

Ward and Kiros reached it before it could fire on them. Ward launched his spear but the cyborg used his machine gun to take the blunt of it. He threw both the gun and the spear off to the side. Ward used his increased strength to throw a wickedly fast right cross but the enemy warrior was too strong. He blocked the strike then drew his ax and swung it at Ward's head. Ward was just fast enough to bring his other arm up to take the blow. The ax blade cut him across the forearm and the side of his neck, cutting him wide open.

He fell to the ground as Kiros jumped in front and threw a nasty round kick house that made contact it's left side. The cyborg stumbled back but quickly regain his stance and swung at Kiros. Kiros brought both katals up and blocked the attack then counter attacked by lunging with both blades. The cyborg swung the ax his circular motion redirecting the katals off to the side of him then brought his empty hand up and smashed Kiros in the face with his fist. Stunned and blinded from the blood that ran into his eyes, Kiros tried to swing both blades again but the cyborg was quicker and stronger and with one mighty swing he knocked both katals out of Kiros' hands. It swung completely around and put it's ax through the beefy part of Kiros' left leg. Kiros yelled in pain but was cut off as the enemy warrior launched in and smashed Kiros up against the wall with his empty hand. He brought the ax back with his other hand to gain, primed to put the point right through Kiros' skull.

But Ward was up again and pointed his hand out at the cyborg, blasting it with a bolt of lighting magic that nailed the Estharian cyborg in the back causing it to shake. Kiros wiggled free and rolled off to the side. Laguna got up on his knees and pulled his sidearm then opened fire on it, pelting it with round after round. Bullet after bullet crashed into it, some ricocheting off the armor on the shoulders but most plunging into the softer armored stomach area. The full metal jacket slugs carved their way through it's body causing greenish blue liquid to gush forth from it's body. It dropped to it's knees as Laguna lined up the pistol on it's head. Firing his last round the bullet sailed through the air and decked the cyborg right in eye. The slide on Laguna's pistol slammed back into a locked position indicating that the magazine was empty. The enemy cyborg shook for a moment then crashed face first into the ground and became still.

Laguna strained to get up to his feet. The pain from his bullet wound was searing and sharp. Kiros was a little better and managed to get up faster. They went over to Ward who was holding his throat.

"Ward, are you ok?"

Ward tried to speak. "Bleeding bad...aving...ouble...talking."

They could hear the clank of boots and voices yelling. There rest of the enemy soldiers were getting close. They both reached down and got Ward to his feet then stumbled past the dead cyborg and outside to a cliff that dropped off into the Southern Ocean.

A dead end.

They were dead.

No cover, no ammo and no weapons left.

All three dropped to their knees and crawled to the edge of the cliff and were shocked by what they saw. Three patrol boats sat unguarded at the bottom of the cliff.

"We can make it if we jump! Lady luck is on our side. We can escape in one of those boats." Laguna shouted.

"One would normally say that we've been run down or that we got our asses kicked." He crawled forward and looked down at the boats. "I don't know Laguna, it's got to be seventy or eighty feet to the bottom."

Laguna stood again. "Have more faith Kiros, didn't your grandmother always tell you that if you say bad stuff, it happens."

Kiros grinned slightly. "If you say something bad...it will come true. Yea, I think she did."

Ward made an attempt to speak but only a gargled moan came out.

"What?"

Kiros looked over at the gash on Ward's throat. It looked deep and was still bleeding. "I think his throat...was injured. He lost his voice."

"It was un...you.. uys. La..guna...Kir...os...it's been fun." Ward said before blacking out.

Laguna and Kiros exchanged looks of panic.

"Ward, way uncool. It's not cool to say things like that. You're gonna make it." Laguna shook Ward a few times but got no response then slowly brought his fingers down on his throat and let out a sigh of relief. He was still alive. Laguna made the decision right then. They were going to jump and take their chances. Those boats probably had food and medical supplies and each had a gun turret mounted in the front and back. And they were definitely dead if they stayed here. He reached over and threw Kiros off the edge before he could say anything. Then he slowly dragged Ward's unconscious body over to the edge and pushed it over. The yelling was getting louder; Laguna could hear voices shouting orders. He looked over the edge again and let the height of the jump sink in. "Whoa..you guys have guts. Do you know how high this goddamn cliff is!?" He attempted to slowly lower himself over the edge but slipped and lost his grip. "Oh shit!"

Laguna fell back and plummeted through the air, crashing into the water below.

* * *

"So this dream world that you go into is really the lives of these three soldiers...Laguna, Ward and Kiros." Rinoa asked.

"That's right! Like I said, it's only happened once so far and we don't know what it means yet. Although last time it was me, Squall and Selphie."

Rinoa sat thinking for the next couple minutes as Zell paced back and forth inside the cave. It was a good thirty yards away from the path and proved decent cover. All of a sudden, all three SeeDs snapped back to reality and stood right up. Zell stopped pacing and threw his arms up in shock.

"Dude, was it Laguna again?"

"Sir Laguna is in big trouble! I hope he'll be ok." Selphie said.

Quistis shook her head again. "Ok, that doesn't seem like the first time for all of you all. What just happened?"

The group went silent again for a moment and then Selphie and Zell looked over at Squall. Quistis picked up on this and looked to Squall for an explanation. Squall crossed his arms and looked down to the right, a signal to the others that he was thinking.

_If it were just me, I could tell the others that this was only some crazy dream..._

"We'll just be wasting time trying to figure it out. We should keep moving. I'll explain it to ya on the way there Quistis." Squall figured it was the right move. It would do them no good to try to figure out dreams or even Rinoa's surprising magical talent.

Zell walked up and pumped his fist. "Yea! Let's keep going. We've gotta get to Garden and warn everyone!"

Everyone took off down the path except for Rinoa, who walked over to Squall. She had a look on her face that was full of both worry and relief but also guilt. He stopped for a second to give her his attention.

"Um...Squall, I think I may have said too much before. I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it." Squall replied as he waved it off. It didn't matter what was said before, their objective was to get to Galbadia Garden. Squall needed Rinoa sharp and attentive in case they were attacked again, not worrying about how mad he was at her. Which he wasn't. Which was strange. Squall never let someone off the hook that easily yet he'd already forgiven and forgotten anything she'd said to him, even the nasty comments back in Timber about him and the SeeDs. Something about this girl's strength, her willpower and compassion fascinated Squall and maybe even...interested him? Squall shook it off and buried those thoughts, now really wasn't the time.

He snapped out of his thoughts and saw Rinoa still looking at him. He put his hand on her shoulder and gave it a quick shake. "Come on, let's get going. There is nothing to talk about. We have to catch up with the others."

* * *

**NOTES**

I kept this dream scene a little shorter than I had planned. I wanted to have Laguna's team under fire and rushed since they were caught snooping around in Esthar territory. I also didn't go into a lot of detail regarding Lunatic Pandora. I just don't think there is that much to say about it yet. It's basically just a large rock that they ran through to lose the Esthar troops. Also, I wanted them to get pretty bashed up this time around so that they would literally have to crawl their way out. ALSO, I changed up the details of the Moombas and thier homeland. I never liked that idea in FF8 that the Shumi transformed into Moombas. Quite frankly, I thought it was a stupid plot idea that made no sense. So I've made the Moombas their own species and the Shumi will be their own as well. This will serve my version of this story better anyway.

This may be my last chapter for a little bit of time while I work on my own story I'm trying to get published at some point if I ever finish it...and if its any good. Eh, we'll see. But don't worry, I won't take that long to update again.

Till next chapter...


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